Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1916-09-29


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when sales are negotiated, il is Otter
impossible for the purchaser to See
what he is buying. To afford pro
lection under such conditions it i:
therefore desirable that there be gen
orally accepted standards for differ
ent products.
Growth of Intermediate Agencies
All the many market develop
ments which came about as a result
of the great development of the
country tended to thrust the farmel
farther and farther from the con.
sumer of his products and interposeG
between these two terminal factors
in the marketing system an ever-in,
creasing group of intermedia ries
Buyers, transportation systems, ware
housemen, wholesalers, jobbers, com
mission merchants. brokers, and re-
tailers all rose up to take part in the
mdIhetlHS procedure.
The farmer, and in many instances
the consumer, felt that the number
of these Intermediates was too great
and that this condition made for I'M
justly low returns to the producer
and unfairly high prices to the con-
sumner. Whether this opinion is JUS
titled or not, in some instances it is
certain that it was reached without
adequate data on which to base it,
for no studies have been made to de-
termine which marketing functions
were essential and which, if any,
might be dispensed with. Little was
known, also, of the costs of the serv-
ices.
Office of Markets Organized.
These were some of the chaotic
conditions in the marketing ma
chinery Of the country which led to
the establishment of the Office of
Markets as a governmental agency.
The departments commission from
congress to take up marketing work
was in the form of an appropriation
of $4,000 Ito enable the secretary
of agriculture to acquire and diffuse
among the people of the United
States useful information on subjects
connected with the marketing and
distribution of farm products" 1t
was necessary that this should be the
first step in the governmental mar
keting work, forfi the great need of
producers, consumers, and dealers
alike was for full knowledge in re-
gard to existing maket procedure in
order that they might judge ade-
quate of the possibilities for better
ment.
So great was this need for facts
that the Office of markets found it's
field much larger than it could at
first fill. 1t has had, therefore, to
select some of the fundamental and
moreurgent problems from among
the many facing the farmer, concen-
trating its attention for the time on
those. After the second year of the
marketing activities the rural organ
ization work was combined with that
of the Office of markets under the
title of Office of markets and rural
organization. In the years following
the inauguration of the work con-
gress has greatly increased the an
nual appropriation of the Office. The
appropriation for the fiscal year end
ing June 80, 1917, is $872,59O.
Realizing that a better understand
ing by the farmer of the whole eX-
listing machinery of marketing was
desirable, the Office undertook and is
carrying out as one of it's projects
survey of markets, methods, and
costs. This includes surveys of the
origin and movement of specific COM
modities as we'll as the conduct of a
market news service which gives pro-
ducers and dealers from day to day
their first specific. countrywide in
formation in regard to the supply of
and the demand for perishable farm
products.
AS another project the Office has
taken up a study of the standardized
ton, grading, and packing of prodt-
ucss. Through this work it is hoped
to furnish a more nearly universal
language of marketing and systems
of grading or classification which will
make known to the producer exactly
what he has for sale, and which will
permit the consumer or dealer to
know in advance exactly what he is
purchasing.
Problems Taken Up.