The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1921-06-03
SALES AGENCY
PROJECT NOW BEFORE THE
STATE CREAMERY MEN y
Conference Cooperative Men To
Be Held In ST. Paul June
6 and z

st. Paul, May z9-The conference
of cooperative creamery men to dis
cuss the establishment of a sales
agency and to provide for the stand
lardization of butter grades Will be a
big factor in deciding the future well
fare of one of Milnesota's leading in
misunderstanding the opinion or
Hugh ]. Hughes director OF markets
of the state department OF agrlcul-
ture, It will be held in st. Paul June
6 and Z. The investment necessary
to maintain the herds which produce
dairy products in Minnesota was est
mated by Mr.. Hughes today to be in
excess Of s333, 600, 900. The butter in
dustry in 1919, according to the dairy
and food department, resulted In the
pavment of $143,176,0 900 10 Minneso-
tans for SO,793,000 pounds of butter,
or more than the value OF the output
of iron mines.
Means Huge Saving.
The proposed sales agency plan
means a huge saving to the farmers
Hughes. Refrigeration, cartons,
freight and other factors in transpor-
tation Of butter from Minnesota to
New York brings the costs to approx
mately Az cents a pound where less
than carload lots are handled. Mr..
Hughes says that the saving in ship
ping In car lots Is approximately 500
a car Estimating that there are
5000 cars year shipped from the
save considerable in excess of $780,
600 a year for the farmer owners OF
CO. operative creameries. This goes to
firms which-make q practice OF as
sembling butter and shipping in car
lots, according to Mr.. Hughes.
eff the CO cooperative creamery would
consent to put a half cent pound
of butter produced into the hands of
competent men in cooperative
said. sit would provide sufficient
funds and in year would not cost
the producers anything as the money
saved in grouping butter for shipment
in car lots alone would pay the ex-
pense TIE money which the sales
agency would save on freight alone
would be more than enough for the
velop Standardization OF grades and
other things for the benefit of the
farmer.
Greater Market Needed.
"a greater market will have to be
developed if the producer is to find
sufficient buyers for his produce. Ev
en- at the present time, butter is diff
ficult to SELL The Standardization of
grades would be of great benefit. Now
q person does not get just what quail
ity of butter he is to get. If one buys
grain or other goods by grade. he
knows exactly what he is going % get
and can depend on the quality.
However, If consumer could go
to store and ask for Minnesota A,
B or c grade butter and know that
of butter, where it was made in a
Goodhue county CO. cooperative cream
cry or in Polk county, 1T would estab-
lish a market and demand for stand
ardized butter"
Mr.. Hughes estimated that there
are 10000 farmers who are patrons
of approximately 600 CO operative
creameries in the state and that they
have $4,000 cows which are produc-
ing milk to supply these creameries.
Estimating cows to be worth $50
each, there would be So, 000, 900 in
vested in cows. Each cow would re-
quire two acres of land average $1F'
an acre for feed and maintenance, or
$500 a cow totaling $200,000,000. To
keep these herds Up, it would require
half as many more cattle,~ so that the
value of land to keep up these other
non producing cattle, would require
81, 900, 100000. 1t was on these figures
that Mr.. Hughes based his estimate Of
1888 ,000,0 900 investments in the state
for the production OF butter, not TAX
ing into consideration Of the value of
the creameries. There are 600 cream
cries with operating expenses averag-
ing probably $4,000 and 81 900 men are
employed in production of dairy prod
ucts.