The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-03-25
DISTRIBUTION AS II
AFFECTS CONSUMER
Cost of Food and Other Necessities
Affected by Handling and
Freight.

/ In a country as large as the United
States the problem of proper hand
ling and marketing of the food sup
plies Is n complex one. that il has
not been done economically In the
past is unquestioued improvements
are being made and if given proper
attention by the farmers Will result
/ in immense gains both TO the pro-
Queer and consumer.
The producers associations. such as
the Apple Growers association, the
Citron Fruit association, Of the Pacific
coast: the Melon and Peach Growers
association, of Georgia, and many
, others of like character. are great
helps toward the proper distribution
of perishablc products. There Is room
for the Increase Of such methods a
thousand fold. Tho great trouble is.
many farmers are penny wise and
pound foolish and hesitate to pay out
small sums as fees or commission,
! thinking they can gave such expenses
and market their goods on their own
hook and beat their neighbor. True.
they do get a good price now and
then. but more often they ship to
glutted market and receive little or
no returns. The consumer does not
benefit to any extent from this con-
d!tion because the retail prices are
upheld oven when the wholesale mar
ket is glutted and thousands of pounds
of produce being sent to the dump
+ or the incinerator.
! Farmers when shipping indspen-
IDENTITY are governed by the prices
quoted in the papers or by commits
sion merchants; those prices are twen@
ty-four hours old when received and
thousands Of farmers are influenced
/ by the same quotations and ship
simultaneously To tn, same market,
causing the over-suppiy or glut in the
market. The association acts on a
different basis: 1t gathers data as to
the average daily requirements of all
the large cities within its shipping
radius and distributes the proper pro-
portion of each product to each city,
thus maintaining regular price
which gives the producer in the ag-
gregate a better return in each than
he would receive from widely ffuc-
tuating market The consumer also
would benefit because. as stated, he
gets no lower prices when the market
is glutted. but he is charged double
when there IL the least shortage
therefore, a regular supply will give
him reasonable and steady price.
! The parcel post should be a great
avenue of trade between the farmer
and the city people. VIII il be? The
/ writer's first experience Is not prom
Using. A few weeks ago, by CORES
/ pondence. we arranged with a coun-
! try woman to mail several dozen eggs
each week, we to pay the Cary street
| price on day of arrival. The first lot
came; the Cary street price that day
I on fresh, nearby was 81 cents. which
price was remitted Back came the
demand that she wanted S5 cents per
dozen and payment of return postage
/ on the empty" True eggs were
F, then retailing for SO TO 50 cents, but
] she could not expect to get retail
prices. ana had she shipped to a com
mission merchant she would have paid
ten per cent commission. netting her
about IS cents
I Many citizens have experienced the
! same trouble. Now il the farmers
expect TO get an outlet for their sur
plus chickens, eggs butter and vege-
tables they must abide by their agree
ments with customers and must ship
regularly ana not expect 10 get the
retail dealers prices, because that Is
what the city housekeeper is trying
to get away from the exorhtant
prices Of the retailer NJ the same
time securing fresh country produce.
The writer can secure many custom
ers for farmers Who mean business
ard will tote fair
4 W X BACHE.
Mgr Richmond Manufacturers
Exhibit