The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1921-05-06
MARKETING FARM PRODUCTS
Cooperative Selling Will Give Grower
Large Share Of consuhs"s o
Dollar.

Clemson College, May AIN mar
keting farm products, comparatively
or otherwise, certain things must be
done. Most of these necessary steps
are included In the following.
! % The commodity must be assem-
bled or concentrated.
(2) 1t must be graded and standar'
died.
(s) Part Of the crop must be ware
housed or %processed.
| (4) The marketing operation must
be financed.
go Cheap transportation must be
provided.
(S) Expert salesmanship must be
brought into play. 49,,
CD The commodity must be retailed
! Or distributed to consumers.
The above mentioned steps coming
| between the growing and. the consum'
ing of a crop are at present largely
conducted by the so-called middlemen'
BY looking over the list 1t ia seer that
the "middlemen" includes the rail-
roads, bankers, jobbers, retailers,
warehousemen, and in the case OF
Isome commodities the manufacturers
IN addition to spectators.
Cooperative marketing by the grow.
ers, II it accomplishes its object, Will
effect. saving In those steps between
the growing and consuming OF q com
modify where loss or unnecessary
| waste now occurs. In other words, a
cooperative marketing association OF
growers will do those things neces'
sary which are not now being done
| efficiently and will leave alone those
things which are being done properly
The following principles OF co-opera'
tive marketing have been put Into
practice by the California associations
| and elsewhere and clearly apply to
the cooperative marketing OF any
commodity.
CD Organization by commodity OF
crop. .
(2) Membership limited to growers
and to landlords who receive a part
! Of the crop as rental.
.(3) Binding crop contracts between
| growers and association.
az Grading Of the crop or commod.
ity and pooling according to grade.
(5) The business of the association
to be handled by experts.
60 Organization without capital
stock and. therefore a non-dividend
paying association. All profits are
paid to growers, thus making the as
ISOLATION purely cooperative.
Organization by Commodity.
It seems we'll established that or
g~anization of a farmers association
by commodity rather than by locality
is essential for success, An organiza'
ton set up for the purpose, OF market
! ing peanuts efficiently might be utter
" unable to cope with the problems
involved in marketing cotton or tobac'
CO. It would not be advisable to try
to combine the marketing OF cotton
and peanuts but it would be entirely
feasible to market several kinds OF
truck crops through the same organ.
ization because Of the similarity Of
the problems involved.
since there is no stock and hence nc
dividends in a purely cooperative as
ISOLATION there is no inducement fol
anyone to join except those having
the commodity to sell. In order thai
the association night represent pri
marily the interests Of growers, mem
bership is limited to actual growers
and landlords who receive part Of the
! sfop as rental.
|. The Crop Contract.
me crop contract Is essential 10
the reason that 1t gives the association
title to the commodity for purposes Of
marketing. without such contract the
association could not market the com
modify because it would have no CON
troll over it. The crop contracts create
a<basis upon which the association
can more readily borrow money To-
making advances to growers as frs
payments.
Grading and Pooling.
When a member Of an association
delivers his crop 1t is Immediately
! graded and he is given a receipt fol
the amount of each grade delivered
, His product is then mixed in with
that of other members and lots OF each
grade are made, up. These lots arr
called pools. His interest in each
pool is represented by the proportion
which the product delivered by him tc
the pool bears to the total amount II
that pool. In this way every mar re
ceives the same price for the same
article.
Trained and Expert Management.
Farmers are too busy with produc
ton ever to become expert and ell
cient at handling these even steps II
marketing. A cooperative marketing
association Of growers, If large enough
nav employ the best talent in exis