The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1926-10-20
PAGE EIGHT
Direct Selling Us.
The Public Market

eBy j. S. Montgomery, General Man.
lager Central Cooperative Commission
Association
The question of whether it is more
advantageous to the livestock pro-
ducer to ship his hogs to an open COM
petitive market for sale, or ship them
directly to some packing plant or
packer owned concentration yards
where the packer fixes the price and
takes title to hogs and other live
stock competition, is a very live ques-
tion at the present time and one which
lis worthy of the serious consideration
of livestock producers throughout the
country. 1t has become such a
live question that one of the largest
packing institutions of the country
has been fit to flood the mails with
pamphlets and articles on this sub
ject for the past few months and it
lis such an important question to the
livestock producer that it will un-
doubtedly have the serious attention
of Congress at the next regular ses-
sion.
The sale of livestock on our large
competitive livestock markets is pre-
dictated upon the proposition that all
interests will be best served if the
livestock is offered for sale in the
hands of competent statesmen who re-
present and protect the interests OF
ma av1o a
such livestock can be purchased by
any packer or other buyer, large or
small, who may be the highest bidder
for that particular livestock on The
particular day upon which it is Of
fered for sale on the market. On the
other hand, the shipment of livestock
directly to privately owned pack
ing plant or to a concentration point
which is owned by a packing COM
pany, is predicated upon the PROPOSE
tion that the packer in question is an
unusually big hearted, public spirited
individual, who is not only willing
but anxious to pay to the producer
every nickel which the products from
such livestock will yield when sold,
less the expense of handling said live
stock through the plant. Such a
method presupposes that the packer
n question is very unselfish indi-
v1dual, that he is more interested in
the interests of the producer than he
is in his own business, and that he
does not need the competition of other
packers to keep his operations up to
the highest point of efficiency. Ii
this be true, then the fundamental
principles upon which our large COM
petitive markets are based are entire
Iy wrong and erroneous, and our sys-
tenn of having the producer represent
ed on the terminal market by COM
mission statesmen is entirely wrong
and the livestock consigned to the
terminal markets should be consigned
directly to the packer by the pro-
ducer with the understanding that
the packer will pay him whatever he
deems such livestock worth.
1t has been our observation, how
ever, that many of our customers
even those who often make prac
tise of shipping livestock directly tt
the packer, often feel that the packers
are very unfair in the bids which the!
make upon their livestock which ar
offered for sale on the competitive
market We do not say this in crit
icism of the packer as we have Away
assumed, and we believe rightly sc
that the managers of all of the large
packing institutions were bushes
men who felt that it was their obi
cation to so operate their bushes
as to make profit if possible TO
those who had money invested in tn
business, and it must be said to tn
credit of the packers that they Ofte
times buy livestock on the open com
petitive market which are not desir
able from the packers standpoint ane
assume the responsibility of finding
an outlet for the products of suci
livestock at some price even though
it does not make. desirable or high
~ merchantable product.
Our criticism is of the produce
who is assuming position, for tn
packer which the packer will not op
enly assume for himself, namely tina
the packer will pay every possibl
dollar which he can afford to pay TO
livestock at all times, whereas tn
packers only contention regardin
direct buying is that he is willing {
nav as much for livestock consigne
directly to him as similar livestoc
is selling for at a given date on tn
open market; and if he is honest h
will admit very frankly that he
glad to have the, livestock shipped t
him directly as it often makes it po