The Wilmington morning star., 1947-12-20
Taken From Life
Rv H. A. STALLINGS

BY H. A. STALLINGS
Throughout Southeastern
North Carolina you find today a
rapidly increasing interest IN
processing plants for local ag-
ricultural crops and for all Local
materials. The reason is that
the processing profits as well
as the production profits shoulc
remain in this section.
For that reason we have no
ted in this column the steady
success of the plant at White
vile which processes wheat in
to flour, the sweet potato pro
cessing plants at Tabor City
and the processing plant at Bur
gaw.
We made a second visit today
to the Pender Cold Storage anc
Freezer Locker Cooperative
Inc, at Burgaw, Lewis Blake is
the manager. AS the name i'm
plies this is cooperative o1
farmers and it now has arounc
one hundred sixty members. Il
is not vet a year old haVing
started operations January 13
1947. We direct attention to the
variety of services this process.
ing plant has performed since
opening and during it's first
year.
First, it has handled around
five thousand turkeys and now
has on hand about two thou
sand. The turkeys are brought
to the plant dressed and there
they are wrapped in cellophane
paper, frozen, placed in cartons,
and shipped in refrigeration
trucks.
AS all housewives know, in
small families there is a de,
mand for small turkeys because
a small turkey is all small
family needs at one time. The
United States Department OF
Agriculture has developed at its
Belksvil]e White experiment
station in Maryland small tur.
key. The hen averages from
five to seven pounds and tn G
tom from seven to twelve
pounds. So far the BurgaW
plant has received about a hun.
dred of these small turkeys, all
of them having been sent in by
the Triangle Poultry Company
of Wallace.
1t was at the Burgaw plant
you will remember that the idea
of turkey steaks originated
with Lewis Blake one of the
originators. The turkey steak is
an idea solely for Gull turkeys
that are not marketable other.
wise. If the market absorbs all
the turkeys no animals are
made into steaks. Mr.. Blake
stated that all of the turkey
steaks there had been market
ed. Whether or not any more
will be prepared, depends on
whether any turkeys are left
over after meeting the market
ing demands. We noted in the
press dispatches this week that
a farm organization at Vidalia,
Georgia, has adopted the idea
of Blake and is now marketing
turkey steaks. AS you see i'm
mediately. the small turkey
now on the market is a COM
petitor of the turkey steak, both
being in amounts suitable for q
smell family.
Second, the Burgaw plant al
ready has marketed twelve and
half tons of blueberries. These
are packed in thirty-five poune
cans, frozen, and marketed tc
pie making firms.
Third, the BurgaW plant has
installed three hundred sixty
freezer lockers and every one OF
these is rented on an annual
basis. In addition there is now
a waiting list of about forty peo-
pie desiring lockers.
Fourth, the Burgaw plant has
around thirty thousand pounds
of pork for market. The in por-
tant thing to be noted about this
is that ninety-five per cent Of
this came from small farms,
averaging not more than three
animals for this purpose. 1t
evidences that commercial live
stock production has reached a
large number of small farms,
and it raises the probability that
these farms will seek to
increase their livestock produc-
ton the coming year.