The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1920-02-04
THE SUCCESSFUL MARKET
ING OF SWEET POTATOES
Careful Handling, Curing, Grading ana
Study Of Market Conditions

Careful Handling, Curing, Grading ana
Study Of Market Conditions
Necessary.
Clemson College, Dec. 15.-The sue
cessful marketing Of sweet potatoes
depends on several factors, one OF
the more important of which is the
growing in marketable quantities. BY
this we mean that We should not gro"
small lots, depending too much on
our home markets, all Of which are TO-
Gated in a sweet potato section and
are being supplied at digging time
from the curb. If we have less than
a carload of sweet potatoes and are
able to get a good price for these on
our local market, we should consider
ourselves very fortunate and at the
same time think Of this as an accident.
The above applies to the markets
at harvesting time rather than during
the winter months, when one third
Of the sweet potatoes grown have de-
cayed from lack Of suitable storage
facilities. Oftentimes the Division OF
Markets Of the Clemson College E1-
tension Service is asked to find a mar
kst for IS or 100 bushels Of sweet po-
tatoes near some glutted market but
some distance fron an open market.
It becomes an expensive proposition
to ship these potatoes, and handling
and exposure given them when sent
In local lots by freight make their
movement by freight impossible. But
from the same point it may be very
easy task to move two or more car
loads of sweet potatoes to some large
market center or coal mining or mill.
ing center.
When all said, it is not the quantity
to be marketed that should receive
the greater part of our attention
Though we should focus our eyes
on quantity for time), because when
we begin growing for markets other
than our curb markets we must nec-
essarily give more attention to the
handling and grading Of our sweet
potatoes. A consignment Of sweet
potatoes that reaches its market des-
tination showing signs of bad handling
never commands the top market price.
On the other hand, potatoes careful
ly handled will always receive a
ready sale at prices that will more
than pay for the extra time and labor
expended in careful handling. This
handling process begins at harvesting
time and ends when the potatoes
reach the consumer.
Through careless handling and stor-
ing Of sweet potatoes we have been
losing from so to 70 per cent of the
crop grown each year. The crop is
now becoming of commercial impor-
tance and will be extensively culti-
vatsd in the sections of the state
invaded by the Mexican boil weeyil;
and all who intend to grow sweet
potatoes for the market should build
sufficient storage houses and provide
the best means Of handling this now
important crop for market.
While the production of the sweet
potato has increased during the past
few years, many new markets have
opened up and thousands Of people
are becoming better acquainted with
the southern grown sweet potato. No
limit as to market has been reached
yet and at this time number Of
sweet potato dealers and fruit and
vegetable marketing associations are
doing much to advertise the south
ern sweet potato and increase the
consumption Of this product. The
crop is Of a perishable nature, as
stated above, If not handled properly,
and only recently has it been given
the proper handling which enables it
to be thrown on distant markets.
This story is told of the first car.
load Of Nancy Hall sweet potatoes
that reached Columbus, Ohio, about
four years ago through mistake: A
certain dealer in that city had been
handling a dry, mealy sweet potato
grown in q colder section Of the
country, not as well adapted as this
section to the growing Of the sweet
potato, and through a commission
firm in the East they had asked for
a car Of these dry sweet potatoes. The
commission house instead, by mistake,
sent a carload Of the rich favored,
juicy Nancy Hall variety from Geor.
gia. When the dealer discovered that
he had the wrong variety e potatoes
he Immediately said, Well, we will
have to sell these at IS cents less
on the bushel and take loss" "No,"
said southern friend, sell them
at Is cents more per bushel, for they
are worth more, and don't fail to ad-
vertise them"
Needless to say this carload went
at that price and. in the words of