The Lynden tribune. [volume] (Lynden, Wash.) 1908-current, 1921-04-14
BERRY BUSINESS
NEEDING TONIC
PRICE OF. FRUIT FOR COM.
ING SEASON MAY BE
BELOW COST OF pro.
DUCTION
Berry Expert Feels Need of Pa.
ternal Organization to Aid
Grower and Marketing,
BY w. II. PAUuHAMlJs


present time, sick and in the hos.
pital,' That it will be necessary to
do something of an unusual nature
in order TO protect the industry from
a severe setback.
For example, have received a let
ter today from the president of the
fIrst National bank OF Mountain
View, Cal, which is in the center of
the fruit industry of California. in
which we are advised that the can.
ming plants in that district expect to
purchase their strawberries for the
season of 1921 at cents per pound
From the best information | can
gather. many of the users of logan.
berries in the Willamette valley ex.
pect TO secure their requirements for
about cents per pound. 1t should
be clear to every grower that it is
the low price, wherever made. that
very largely regulates the industry,
because one manufacturer cannot af.
ford to pay more for his raw material
than his competitor. l do not be.
ieve there is any real good excuse
for beating the grower down as low
as this price would Indicate
No Profit at q Cents.
No person knows better than my.
self that there is no profit in straw.
berries at cents per pound under
existing conditions and the industry
is not worth anything to the country
unless the grower makes a reason
able profit; and il the grower does
not make a reasonable profit, he will
discontinue growing, with the result
it will only be few years until we
get back again to a point where the
supply is not equal to the demand.
While it is true that the consul
mer was compelled to pay to the
grower an unreasonable price last
year. yet it must be borne in mind
that each of US is willing to take all
we can get for any commodity that
We have to sell.
What we really need in the north
west is big. strong, we'll financed
corporation with heart. | do not
mean that the corporation itself
should have a heart, but l do mean
that the management of the organi-
cation should have constructive Wis
ion. If so, it would see the neces-
sity of the grower making a fair
profit. This would enable the manu-
facturer to pass the product along
to the consumer at price that would
not slow up the industry, but would
increase it.
More Berries Here.
My Investigations have taught me
that we can produce very much
more fruit per acre in western Wash
ington and western Oregon than can
be produced in any other section OF
the United States. Tina. we are not
only capable of producing very
much larger volume per acre, but
the quality of our fruit greatly ex'
ceeds the quality of eastern or south
ern grown fruit.
For example, every community That
know of in the United States that
produces red raspberries must lay
all canes on the ground in the fall
of the year and cover them with
dirt to keep from winter freezlng'
If this statement is correct, 1t should
be entirely clear to every fair think
ing person that with our canes three
times as long as any raspberry canes
! have ever seen elsewhere. and the
fact that we do not find it necessary
to bury the canes during the winter
should clearly indicate that we
should be able to drive out OF the
business every other raspberry sec
ton of the United States. II we
have the quality, the quantity, the
texture, and if we have the diner
ences above enumerated, there is no
good reason why our berries shouiu
not command the market everywhere
But it is stability that counts.
Marketing Big Problem.
The successful food producers nave
their own marketing agencies ana are
able to say to the wholesale grocer
just what is a reasonable pront ioi
him and compel him to accept tha'
profit only. They can then go 10
the retail grocer and advise MN
what should be a reasonable pioh.
between the retail grocers cost ana
the consumer. In other words, II
grower gets cents per pound lot
his berries and the consumer pays
25 cents per pound for the same per
ries in the shape of jam, the grower
is discouraged in growing ana the
consumer will refuse to buy
1t is my desire that the grower 10
ceive fair margin OF proht Oh sro"
ing the berries. The Gamer Is
titled to 10 per cent proht' ai.er .ne
total cost is taken care OF. Inc
wholesale grocer is entitled TO ABOUT
the same amount as the Gamer Inc
retail grocer must have about 20
per cent profit because he handles
very much smaller quantities ana Is
at a very much heavier expense per
dollar of business done. In Otnel