Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1924-03-06
The association began marketing


the rice in the rough. They cleaned
and milled it and then sold it to whole
sale dealers. The old-time speculative
buyer and miller were eliminated. For
few weeks things went along well
enough. The first rice sold over the
associations tables brought $1.30 per
bushel. Then came the smash in the
market. It dropped and kept on drop
ping It'll offers were lowering around
an 85-cent basis and there were few
offerings at that figure. The condition
continued. 1t began to grow worse.
1t didn't pay to sell rice in the
rough; there were too many interme-
date fees. The farmers must take
over the mills and market their own
rice in the clean. This was just the
situation that the organizers Of the
marketing company had expected from
the beginning and they were prepared
! to meet it, Although the association
had no mills or money, the milling
problem was easily solved. Tentative
contracts with several large rice mills
were made through which to mill the
rice of the cooperative members when
it no longer paid the organization to
sell the rice in the rough. The War
Finance corporation offered to loan the
rice growers go per cent of the market
value of the rice as it was delivered.
This money was to be used for the
first advance payments to the grow
ers. The other payments were not to
! be made until the cleaned rice was on
the market.
Made Mere Than Neighbors.
The rice farmers Of Arkansas began
their milling operations in the last
week of November, 1921. This was
not until the bulk OF the choice rice
| In the state had been sold to outside
mills in the rough. All that was left
was the lower grades, but even with
these the association averaged on all
grades and varieties fraction over
| 90 cents bushel. The bulk of the
entire crop in 1920 had gone at 80
cents per bushel During 1921 the as.
ISOLATION handled 137.70O,00O pounds
of rice, for which its growers netted
/ 100000. The Arkansas rice grow
ers received more for their rice than
| the growers of any other section They
made from 10 to So per cent more
than their neighbors in Louisiana.
In 1907 it was discovered that the
swamp land Of the Upper Sacramento
valley would grow rice. The Japanese
| Immediately took advantage of these
acres, renting them on one-year
lease. Then they pitched in with their
Oriental pugnacity to make rice pro-
duction pay. AS the California rice
Industry developed there grew up with
it an organization half cooperative.
The Japanese needed someone to
sell their product for them. In 1915
the Pacific Rice Growers association
was organized, to serve merely as an
agent with the exclusive right to sell
all the members rice. The grower,
however, had the privilege of accept
ing or rejecting the bids. Under this
system each growers rice was kept
separately and was accounted for sep
arately after the expenses Of handling
had been subtracted.
This way Of selling was almost like
public auction The association
wasn't real producers cooperative.
But it did give good results for about
five years, but in 1920 it failed be-
cause the millers were afraid to buy
/ the crop. The association was forced
| to adopt a new plan. Toll milling
was tried. This meant selling pol
/ ished rice Most of the growers were
working their land on a one-year
lease, and this prevented the associa-
ton from buying and operating its
own mills. But the tolls plan didn't
work out, so they fixed up the original
plan under new name the Rice
Growers Association Of California.
The one-year contract was heightened
to five; that was the one big change
| In the plan. The title of the rice was
| to pass to the association upon deliv-
cry, but the original plan of selling
each lot separately was retained. The
association continued to refer all bids
/ to the growers for acceptance. The
War Finance corporation made them
substantial loan and the plan
worked. There was no dumping Of
rice on the market in 1921. That year
the association handled more than
100000 bags Of the 1921 crop and
sold them for an average Of $2.65,
which was almost 40 cents per bag
higher than was made by the UNI
organized rice growers OF Texas and
/ Louisiana.
Under One Contract.
Texas and Louisiana saw what CO.
| operative marketing was doing for
Arkansas and California growers; they
decided to give the marketing game a
whirl for themselves. In 1922 the
J Louisiana Farm Bureau Rice Growers
Cooperative association was organ
lied. It was an exact pattern of the
Arkansas association. A similar plan
is now being worked out for east
Texas. When Louisiana and Texas
groups are well under way, it is
planned to coordinate the three
southern state associations under one
overhead machine
Rice farmers. are putting their faith
in cooperative marketing. They are
giving it a trial lease on their rice
fields. In 1921 not one pound of the
2,OOO,OO0,OOO pounds of rice produced
annually in the United States was sold