Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1921-12-12
Northwe Farm ing
News and Notes = oo.apaled ~ .s Grand Forks Herald
THE HOME CATTLE MARKET

That's a yearlng I'm fattening
up for sale. m going to put him In
IL truck and take him over to the
packing plant around Christmas
tine" The Herald visitor was call
ing at a farm about fifteen miles out
Of Grand Forks las week n was as
Usual looking around at the live
stock.
A few days later at another farm
as far distant in another direction,
the Herald visitor was looking at q
long line of Young beef cattle. and
tho farmer said:
These are being fattcned for sale.
They will go about the first Of the
year. l havn't decided yet where III
sell them. I'll probably ship them
down below"
These two remarks set the visitor
to thinking and to making inquiries.
There Is a very good packing plant
the Northern Packing Plant, oper-
ating Just on the outskirts of Grand
Forks. 1t has been operating now
for more than two years. and Is do-
ing a good business. Yet one finds
lha many farmers out through the
territory naturally tributary to this
city, are paying more freight. taking
more time and shipping their i've
stock to markets more than three
hundred miles farther distant. Why?
The general concensus of opinion
Of the farmers who ship to the
Northern Packing Plant seems to be
about what one of them said re-
Gently:
Freight Rates Factor.
Under the present freight rates
Shipping to the Northern Packing
Company seems to me to have a great
advantage over shipping to st. Paul.
find hat shipping here is about a
ont per pound cheaper. The shorter
haul allows me to get my stock de-
livercd in much better condition. and
with less shrinkage, especially in
cold weather.
There arc a number of things
about marketing here in the state
that I like much better than going
to the larger markets. There arc
fewer expenses to be reckoned with.
There is no yardagc to pay-and by
the way, the yards are covered, so
that the stock are protected from the
cold of winter and the heat of sum-
mer. There is no selling commits
sion to pay as there is in more dist
ant markets, no unloading charge,
and no insurance fee, the insurance
being carried bv the company at its
own expense. / have never been
charged anything except for feed
and hat charge wasn't high as 1t
didn't take long to make the sale. A
good many farmers come down with
their stuff in the morning, get il
sold, and go back the same night,
This feature of ~time-saving is a very
important one.
Il have been we'll satisfied with
the prices l have received for my
stock. The local market is based or
the South st. Paul and Chicago quo
tations which come in by wire every
morning. Following these markets
which are published daily in h Her
aid, l can know when to take M
cattle, hogs or sheep to town, and be
i ing only about sixty miles away,
can get my stuff in before the mar
ket slumps.
Less Competition.
There is another advantage to tht
farmer in selling to the Northern
Packing Plant. and that is there i!
no ompctition. In former year:
when I have been selling in thu
South ST. Paul yards, my stuff wa!
not always extra. good and it tool M
several days to find a buyer. Here
they take your stuff no matter wha
its like, fat or thin. This is prob
ably a disadvantage to the mpany
but it is n positive advantage to tn,
L " Az, Nv liza VIZ 1850
hauling any animal down there ant
not making the sale. And he doesn'
have to spend most of his profits o,
hotel bills.
Trucks are being generally uset
all over the country for haulin,
stock to market. Farmers within
sixty mile radius of Grand Forks n
'onger have to consider making VI
carload lots in shipping their liv'
stock. They can load up q couple o
beeves or a half dozen hogs on tn
truck and have them in town befor
moor The roads are being gradual
~ improved, though there is plent.
: of room for improvement yet. Whe1
they are better it will make this mat
ter Of marketing stock by trucl
much more easy and more profit
able"
Wherever there is marketable liv
stock on Il farm the Herald visto
hears this matter of the best place t
ship discussed, from Williston to Be
? midi, and from the Roseau county t
hillsboro. The farmers who hav
shipped to the Northern Packin
Plant say: I've certainly done we
on everything I've taken down there.