The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-07-29
FARMERS ORGANIZE CREAMERY ON THE COOPERATIVE PLAN
Issue No Stock-0rders Ex- ceed Capacity By 2,000 Pounds-Industry at
 Gallion Growing


 been established at Gallion, Ala, and has proven a success from the start.
 It has orders for 2,oO0 pounds more of butter than it's make. IL is the result of cooperative effort by the dairy herd owners of Gallion vicinity. It is the first local cooperative creamery in Alabama.
 It was organized without capital stock. It was the product pure and simple of pooling the interests of the local milk herd owners OH an economic and cooperative basis.
 Following account of the initiation of the enterprise and of its progress to date is given In a letter written to w. M. Spencer of Birmingham. IL reads
 Origin of Enterprise
 About six months ago a few dairy men met by appointment on the sta tion platform to talk over their troubles and to take measures to remedy them. Steps were then taken to organize the first cooperative creamery in the state of Alabama.
 OA NiiOSc PlCSGhl WSlt Oiu cotton planters who were losing money growing cotton under boil weevil conditions. It was apparent that the slipping foundations of agrl- culture in the Black Belt must be built anew. Live stock and hay were the natural outlets, but these ven- lures were not as gratifying as were expected and few farmers ventured into dairying in small way. This was encouraged by the establishment of creameries at Selma and Demop- olis. with the result that in a few years the COW population had grown to about 2,000 in this section.
 Manufacture Home Product
 In the mean time there was growing sentiment among the dairy !. men that they should manufacture their own product and secure for themselves such profits as belonged to the business. Hence the little gathering of dairymen on the plat form of the station at Gallion Com- mittees were appointed to perfect ar ticles of association by which all dairymen could participate in the business.
 The usual method of organizing as stock company was discarded as foreign to the purpose, and that the risks and profits of the business should be based upon some principle other than certificates of stock. IL was agreed that this should be butter fat and milk.
 It was assumed that the plant should belong to the dairymen and not to those who have no direct in- terest in cows, and that the profits of the business should be based upon the product brought from the farm and not upon certificates of stock.
 Issued Joint Note
 With full agreement that the creamery should be built and op- erated upon a cooperative basis, it was obviously not so easy to secure funds in these days of money Famine. A committee was appointed to secure the funds with the guar antee of the dairymen by joint note. This method of financing does not strongly appeal to bankers who have had little experience ith .co-opera- tive efforts. A building of suitable size was rented, deep well was bored, refrigerating plant was in- stalled With full equipment for the handling of the products of the dairy.
 Opened This Spring
 The plant was opened on May Is of this year and has manufactured to date 25,000 pounds of butter besides shipping a considerable quantity of whole milk and sweet cream. The plant is receiving about 300 pounds of butter fat per day, but has stand Ing order for a great deal more but ter than 1t can supply at present.
 In the territory which the plant serves there are now about 2,000 cows With new herds coming in and old ones increasing. It is the hope that the plant Will lead the way to new era of farming in this section based upon dair. ing. Farmers are discovering that the indirect values of dairying are many among those 24 cream checks, per year instead of one as In cotton, hay and stock .rais- Ing, ths. dairying requires less labor, that the manure returned to the land means constant increasing fertility that the sale of young stock and hog from skim milk is considerable.
 Forage is the foundation of all live stock enterprises except the hog. and forage in the black belt can be pro- duced cheaply and in abundance. But there is no animal that win take the rough forage from the farm in the form of pasture, hay and silage ana convert 1t into cash as the milk ing COW. All farms have distressed hay and through the COW this can be economically marketed.
 High-Grade Product
 The Gallion creamery has started with tffe avowed purpose of manufac- turing high quality of butter. This it will be able to do because over 50 per cent of it's cream is sweet. It is the hope Of tho a fo its brand "Alfadell" known where butter of high quality is desired.
 It is important to note that this Is the first cooperative creamery in the state of Alabama and of the south outside of Tennessee. The principle of cooperation among dairymen in an accepted fact in the middle west. The Gallon farmers are therefore in line with the grow ing sentiment for cooperation along many phases of agricultural effort