The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1923-04-05
ONLY PART OF THE WAY

Cooperative marketing has gon,
a long way in the last three years
In the spring of 1920 practically
the only American organization
operating on the pool plan" which
is so generally accepted today, were
those of fruit growers of California
When the first wheat growers as
ISOLATION was organized there were
many who looked with doubt upon
the venture, and, indeed, not one
person in fifty knew what it was all
about.
Today there is not an agriculture
product in America, no matter how
important or how insignificant, which
is not sold through cooperative mar
keting organizations. Commodities
valued at a billion dollars have been
marketed by such associations this
year.
But at that, the movement has just
started. 1t has been the means of
eliminating some of the unjust tolls
which heretofore have been taken
by self-authorized distributors of
farm products, but it has not yet
grown to a point where it can show
what truly great results it can OBJ
tain.
The cooperative marketing I've
ment is based on the assumption that
the organization will control a major
portion of the nations production of
a given commodity. In wheat, in
cotton, corn. hay, the associations
as yet are handling a very small por-
ton of the total production. Until
they have doubled and trebled in
size they cannot accomplish the full
measure of success.
The one reason for existance of
cooperative marketing associations is
to sell the products of their members
at prices which will bring fair and
profitable returns without levying I'M
Justly upon consumers. That the as
sociations are able to do this after
hey control a good portion of any
product has been proven over and
,ver again by the California organi-
.ations and, more recently, by the
obacco marketing groups.
The fact that the wheat growers
associations have been of slower
and consequently have not
,een able to accomplish so much as
ome of the older organizations, does
lot alter their potential power one
As a matter of fact, the slow
r development may be a blessing in
1t means better founded
.ssociations, more time to establish
.ficient sales offices and accounting
orces. 1t is undoubtedly true that
he associations today are much bet
er able to handle a pool of 10000
100 bushels or more than they would
been had they been called upon
do this amount of business dur
ng their first year of operation.
There is only one thing to fear in
his slower development of the whea,
marketing associations. That IS that
he members of some of the associa-
ions may lose heart because of the
inability of the organization to pro-
luce one hundred per cent results
Turing the period of growth, People
bound to become impatient when
hey receive for their products as far
Glow cost of production as has been
he price of wheat during the last
or three years. 1t is really not
uprising that members of some of
he associations, unaware of the ne ,
ecessity for larger pools and more '
lembers, may obtain the idea that :
lie organizations are not accomplish ,
lg as much as they should. T
The wheat growers associations '
re growing today more rapidly than
YER before since the first one was I
rganized. Pools in every state, ex-
ept one or two of the older western Z
nits, r expanding. Opposition to S
nem which existed in the past has
cen done away with. Friends have I
eveloped where interest was lacking |
| years gone by. v
If this progress can continue I'M
necked during the next few months
marketing associations then will c
e in a position where they will have t
lateral effect on national and even
orld wheat prices. A pool of as $
UGH as thirty per cent of the spring U
heat produced in the United States
probable before next harvest.
addition to a winter wheat pool g
if not so large. will be of i'm
in determining prices. a
Only one thing is necessary for the S
sociations to succeed in the work c
r which they were created, to sue h
ed fully, and to succeed before the a
ntracts of the first unit organized tt
we been completed: the undivided A
yalty of the grower members. With h
IS there is no doubt for the future; Ii
thout it, all of the work of the last W
rec years will be of no avail W
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