Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1921-03-02
GIANT GRAIN s LES
AGENCY IS PROPOSED
Outlines Of Nationwide Cooperative
Selling Plan Are Given By Com ]
mittee Of Seventeen.

Details of the nationwide cooperative
grain marketing plan worked out by
1.-The American Farm Bureau federation's
Committee of Seventeen after five
months of research have been made
public.
Every grain raising community in the
country is to. have an opportunity to
consider the plan before It is finally APP
proved. The Committee Of Seventeen
is now drafting plan for national
convention, in which representatives Of
every state and every farmers organ
izati0n will meet to ratify the market
ing program.
Under the grain selling plan, as an
nounced through the Minnesota Farm
Bureau federation today, a national
cooperative selling agency is to be in
corporated on nonstock, nonprOfit
basis. -.
Grain growers will become life mem
bers of this national organization.
5 Year Contracts Proposed
Wherever local cooperative eleva-
tors or grain shipping associations al
ready have been formed, they will be
used as the basis of the national agency.
All existing cooperative units are to
be asked to take part, In communities
where there is no cooperative elevator,
the farmers will organize a local grain
growers association. :.
Farmers will sign contracts to sell
all. their grain through their local CO.
operative for five years. The cooper
alive will make similar contract with
the national sales agency. ~ ~,
20 To
the method by which they will sell their
grain. They may sell on consignment,
they may sell direct to their national
cooperative agency, or they may de-
eide to establish a community pool.
They, may sell to local mills Or for
local consumption. The object OF the
contracts is to enable the national or
ganization to sell the grain as the world
needs it, and prevent violent fluctua-
lions and price depressiOns as result
Of flooded markets at harvest time.
Warehouse System Planned
The Committee of Seventeen is COM
plotting the details of it's plan fol, fin
ancing this giant farmers organization.
1t proposes to establish sales agencies
in every important market, and acquire
government licensed warehouses for
storing the farmers grain. With the
warehouse receipts for this grain as
surety, it is planned to sell debentures
or securities on the open market, or to
farmers, country bankers and the. pub
lie generally, and thus raise money to
finance the cooperative marketing plan.
William G. Eckhardt, treasurer of the
Committee Of Seventeen, in st. Paul to
confer with farm bureau officers, said
that the committee believes the nation
al marketing agency can be made so
strong that it can raise 81 DOC, OOO,OOO a
year to handle the farmers grain.
- The national cooperative probably
would advance to the farmer, when he
ships his grain, IS per cent Of the price
it hopes to obtain for him; the rest Of
the selling price would be paid to him
when the grain is sold. The aim of the
organization is to enable the farmer to
get some return from his crop at once,
without dumping the country's entire
production on the market at harvest
time and forcing the price down.
In that way, farmers would be able
to realize some return on their crops
at once, and their, national agency
would hold the grain and market 1t as
world demand calls for it. 1t is de-
signed to prevent violent fluctuations
through manipulation, and sudden price
depression at harvest time as result
of AN oversupply Of grain flooding the
market. =