Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-04-01
AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION
~ DR.. ANDREW M. SOULE z~

+ his product on the cars the con-
sumner paid approximately 1925
| The spread, in other words, was
about one as to three.
! Viewed from any angle, the work
| of the Fruit Growers exchange. is
| a tremendous enterprise, the aggre
| gate of its business being much
larger than that of any of the great
corporations in this country which
| presume to have a great deal OF
capital at hand ands unlimited fl
nancial backing. AS an enterprise
representative Of the producers of
the soil this organization is bound
| to command our admiration and re.
spect. 1t is evidently Differed by
wise and capable business men, who
have a keen appreciation and I'M
| derstanding of economic conditions
and know how to handle the out
put of the organization in a way to
insure the largest possible returns
for the producer. 1t is easy to see
that without this organization, and
in view of the perishable nature of
the product which is handled, dis
aster would Immediately overtake
the fruit growers Of the state of
California. Possibly it is a realiza-
ton Of these facts that helps to
keep this great enterprise operat-
ing as a we'll co-ordinated business
unit.
Next, let US consider what the
cost of operation may be. Roughly
speaking, it cost little over per
cent per box of fruit marketed, ex-
elusive of advertising. This varied
considerably, but still represented a
heavy item Of expense, amounting in
some instances to as much as 6
cents per box. Presumably a fair
average was around cents, so that
the cost Of handling each box of
fruit through the medium Of the
exchange appears to have been
about 10 cents. This, it will be OBJ
served, gives the exchange a larse
working capital on which to operate,
and has no doubt enabled the organ
ization to build up desirable sur
plus and to pay satisfactory divi-
dends to the stockholders. In other
words, we take it that this particu-
lar organization has been well and
literally financed by those compris-
ing its membership, and we believe
this will be found to be an essential
part of making any cooperative en-.
terprise representative of the inter-
ests of producers permanent sue
cess.
Let us consider now some of the
benefits which accrued to the pro-
49, +I,.o
exchange. First of all, they secured
profitable return for their prod
ucts; not large, so the report says,
but still satisfactory and encourag-
ing. In other words. the member
ship. of this organization enjoyed
profit when practically all other
agricultural enterprises suffered
from a stagnation in the market
and were forced to sell their output
below the cost of production, see it
perish on their hands, Or store it
for future distribution. The prin-
cipal thing to bear in mind in this
connection, therefore, is that this or
ganization functioned properly and
achieved substantial success in
financial way, whereas other pro-
ducers almost uniformly suffered
from the universal depression which
has prevailed throughout the coun-
try and the world at large.
Let us consider next how this end
was attained. In the first place,
the exchange maintains field de-
partment which is tantamount to an
inspection service. This field de-
partment attempts in every way to
educate the membership so as to
enable them to produce better fruit,
handle it more satisfactorily, stand
ardize their output properly, and so
manipulate the fruit THAT it comes
on the market in the best possible
condition. Herein lies largely the
secret of the success which has at
tended the efforts of this particular
organization. It points the way to
others who may undertake to pro-
mote cooperative units for the ben
eft of our producers. In this con
nection 1 do not think it would be
inappropriate to insert the follow
ing quotation from the annual re-
port of the California Fruit Grow.
ers' Exchange.
Proper handling methods, both in
the field and the packing house, are
essential to successful marketing.
Good, sound fruit is a prerequisite
to the successful sale Of any prod
uct. To assist the members in check.
ing and improving the field handling,
the field department has made a
frequent, systematic inspection of
the quality Of picking of each asso.
citation, and has aided associations
in improving their methods of han
ding fruit from the tree to the car.
This work has been greatly promot-
ed by the adoption of bonus sys--
TENS of labor payment, based on both
quality and quantity of work. This,
with the supervision and inspection
provided by each association, has
resulted in quality of picking and
field handling beyond what was for.
| merly considered. commercially pos.
Sible.
Conditions for the DEVELOPMENT
| of decay were most favorable this
year, there being an, unusual amount
OF worm-injured, puffy and tender
| fruit; also, due to the extreme de.
| preston in the lemon market dur.
ing the fall, great quantity OF
lemons had practically reached their
life limit on the. tree. During the
first week in February serious de.
cay period threatened, but a vigor.
Gus campaign for better handling
and the grading out, of injured fruit
! quickly corrected the difficulties and
! continued alertness resulted in a