OCR Text |
Show THE UINTAH BASIN FARMER Cooperative Marketing Is Producing Business Farmers By Ralph P. tfCerrett the farmer is prosperous the nation is prosperous; when the farmer is in financial distress, his trouble is reflected in the business of banker, manufacturer and distributer. When This non-perishab- les truth has been recognized for generations, because agriculture is the basis of our economic life, without which there could be neither banking, manufacturing nor distri-of Since 1787 producers bution. this country have been endeavoring to work together in carrying their crops to market so that their busi-- , ness might be stabilized, the moments of frantic prosperity levelled' to fill the hours of depression. No1 thing much was accomplished, how-con-- ! to came ever, and the pubic sider agricultural distress as inevi- -' table, much as we once looked on panics, recurring every so often and nothing to be done about it except run to cover, or perhaps due to some inferiority in the farmers non-perishab- , j j j make-u- p which kept him from being business man. Beginning with 1900, however, there has been a gradual change coming over our agriculture, the result of years of experience, some of it bitter. Practical, efficient and sound methods have been developed on a national scale in the solution of the farm problem whereby it is possible for the farmer to get a greater return for his products and the public to get a better article at no increase in price. These methods are embraced in what is known as cooperative marketing, a generic term still much misunderstood and frequently misapplied. Cooperative marketing in a substantial volume in the United States began on the Pacific Coast. In 1915 according to the United States Department of Agriculture, there were 651,000 members of farmers cooperatives; at the beginning of 1925, there were 2.500,000 members in nearly 11,000 individual organizaProducts valued at more tions. than two billions of dollars were 'handled by these cooperatives in a 1924. When any economic-soci- al move- ment reaches such proportions as these, the time for misunderstanding is past. Especially is it important that the "key men of the country such as bankers, should know what cooperative marketing is. what it attempts tc do. what it cannot do. I am glad of this opportunity to write of my experience in the cooperative movement on the Pacific Coast, covering a variety of commodities and to tell why I think cooperation offers the greatest chance for community stability and progress. Cooperative marketing is the voluntary association of producers of similar agricultural commodities for the purpose of jointly administering the distribution of their products under a management of their own choosing, under a sound, legal and binding contract for the delivery cf the crop, and under a plan cf marketing procedure best suited to the orderly handling of the crop iu It is a business underquestion. a It not taking, political venture. is not a panacea for all ills and there is no single program adaptable to all commodities. It is a necessary linking of production and dis- tribution under methods that are flexible and through impulses that are domestic and American. It is founded upon human relationships and has for its purpose human benefits and, therefore, it cannot bo slovenly in its thinking or temporizing in its character. With these general definitions in mind, we can examine intelligently the different types of cooperative marketing organizations now in existence We see that one type is necessary for the handling of peiish-able- s which are distributed locally, such as milk, while another type is hiited to perishable raarketa In national channels, such as fresh fruit and grapes. These associations in would not function successfully which handling move intiq trade channels in the raw state, such as cotton, rice or tobacco, which demand organization Still anpeculiar to their needs. set-u- p cf is other type necessary for the marketing of which are carried to. the trade in finished form under the growers cwn brands. An example of this with which I am intimately familiar d is raisins. The existence of capital stock in an organization does not determine Seme comits cooperative status. modities require capital for the work of processing and distribution, while ethers simply may borrow on the commodity in the raw state in The order to finance the growers. test of cooperative marketing lies in the purpose of those who attempt to use it and the skill .with which they create the institution to serve i Sun-Mai- them. Price Fixing Not the Reason. When an effective cooperative to marketing organization is set-u- p serve its members, the farmers begin to take his place at the council table of business and gradually to withdraw from the line which forms at the note and mortgage window on every interest date. He does not achieve this position to which he is entitled by dictation or .misuse of the power of organization, but by virtue of a service he is rendering tc the community and the nation, as 'well as to himself, a service cf stability which nobody will be quicker to recognize than the banker. Cooperation does not mean price fixing or the violation of economic laws, and those organizations which have thought that group effort gave them the power to suspend the law of economic gravity have found to their cost that its operation continued as inexorable in their industry as it does in any ether line of business. Price fixing is not a reason for the existence of cooperative It is essential to cermarketing. tain types of merchandising as incident to a merchandising plan, benefiting both distributor and consumer, but the minute it disregards the buying power of the public, the value of competing products and the volume to be sold, trouble begins. In other types of merchandising price fixing is neither proper nor beneficial, nor has it ever been successful. Whenever a price level has violated sound economics by rising temporarily above the general level then purchasing has ceased and production has increased to such extent that the cost cf the morning after reconstruction of markets has been too great a price for the party of the night before. Price fixing is a bogey useful only in the arguments of those opposed to agricultural cooperation. If not price fixing, then what are the benefits which agriculture can expect to receive from group effort? Not Forced to Market. Let us look for a moment at the way in which uncontrolled commoThe dities come on the market. fanner cannot time his production as the manufacturer does, but must obey the laws of nature as expressed in the seasons. His crop and the crops of perhaps thousands of men like him come to .maturity at the same time. Under ordinary conditions. they would be rushed to the market, dumped promiscuously and the farmer would rush to his bank to ask another extension of his loan because the proceeds had not been sufficient to enable him to pay out. The farmer, unorganized, has always heretofore sold on a buyers market. Cooperation enables him to hold Ms goods and sell on a sellers market, his association storing the crop, borrowing against it and making UINTAH BASIN FEELING ERA OF PROSPERITY DUE TO ALFALFA SEED This article was taken from a recent issue of the Richfield Reaper and is written by Dr. Albert Bjorn-se- n of Myton and formerly of Ver- ' nal. The old reliable Editor Reaper: reaches my desk Richfield Reaper, promptly every Saturday morning. It is always hailed with joy, as it seems to have the power to transfer one mentally and bodily to old happy hunting grounds and to our many kind friends we left behind in the dear old valley of Sevier. It was unintentional cn my part to postpone my promised communication to the paper on Uintah Basin. A superficial view on conditions as they now exist would not be satisfactory to those 'who may be contemplating a visit or a possible residence in this section during 1926. That the present outlook for this section has but little resemblance to the status quo which existed during my early residency here, is to put it mildly . During these early days, the reservation had not as yet emerged from its experimental stage, while today, it has, like so many sections of the state been tried and NOT found wanting. Agricultural prospects are very bright, and promise in the near future to outstrip many of the older favored sections in the state.- The discovery of its adaptability to seed production on a large scale has brought it into the limelight more effectually than any other agricultural endeavors could have done. Its adaptation to seed production was like many other important discoveries, by e alfalfa field in accident. A the eastern portion of the county was left standing unharvested somewhat later than usual, and proved to be loaded with seed. The incident aroused the neighbors to its importance and these ventured to experiment further with the results that it became universally known that the east was portion of the reservation the heart of the seed belt. Seed is virtually the only crop raised. But it is a gamble all the same and it would be far more sensible to diversi- ten-acr- wished they Many had while the majority are satisfied the way it is. Frequently a fortune is made in one season. As an instance may be mentioned a Salt Lake lady who induced by a friend to purchase an tract in alfalfa. The plot was purchased, produced enough seed to pay for the land in the one season, including the necessary implements. "While all the seed is not yet harvested there are families who are already contemplating a trip into California, to remain there until fy . seed-raise- rs 80-ac- re spring, expecting to repeat the ex- periment in 1926. Still, for all this, seed raising is still in an experimental stage, and while so should be reinforced by a diversified farming. It is admitted, however ,'that since the adaptability of this section to seed raising was discovered some seven years ago, seed has continued to be a success during all these years, and that individual failures have been principally due to inexperienced s, who have refused to follow accepted methods, but have stubbornly maintained their own. This applies mainly to the frequency of irrigation, which many expehave not rienced but highly detriunnecessery mental to the proper maturity of the are still seed. The water hogs numerous here as elsewhere, but wiU be less so when they eventually admit that their stubborn methods have been the means of destroying their hope of a bountiful harvest. The state has found this field of sufficient importance to establish an asagricultural station, which willseedsist in establishing a rule in raising which may prevent failures in this specialty, and besides be of great service in other agricultural endeavors in the basin. During my short residencey here, it becomes more and more evident to me that many eyes are now directed to this section, and that in the near future the population will be greatly increased. The prospects of a railroad into the basin in the near future may assit in attracting new settlers, which will be doubled in case the Bamberger interests decide to build and the U. S. commisioners give their consent to right-of-waDecision in this respect should however be taken with a grain of allowance, and the actual beginning of construction should be the only as surance. There is very little rail road talk here. In fact the sentiments are really divided as to the necessity of a railroad in a section for so many trucks are doing satisfactorily all transportation work necessary. A sentiment of this kind i?, of course, narrow and short-sighte- d aud is equally detrimental to this secti n as the other extreme, optimist" iew, that without a railroad ana t roper transportation facilities tina basin would never amount peed-raiser- only-foun- seed-raise- rs y. to much. Taking it all in all, 'without favor or prejudice, it is the writers candid opinion that this lesser Utah cannot be ignored very much longer, as it posesses all the necesary requisites to make it a mighty agricultural empire. There are many other features in collection with the basin which could not be covered here, features which may be of interest to prospective settlers. At some future time they also may be briefly discussed. - vances to each grower in accordance with his production until such time as the crop can be sold in orderly fashion and complete distribution of the proceeds, with less expenses, can be made. Without in the slightest degree attempting a price fixing pro- gram, the cooperative can take advantage of better selling seasons in order to get a better return for the producer, and can domuch, in some lines, to eliminate speculative losses. This is generally thought of as the main, perhaps the only, way in which cooperation aids the farmer, but there are other ways of almost equal importance, still without asking the consumer to pay a higher price than economic conditions justify. Cocan effect economics in operation processing and manufacturing. Cooperation can simplify distribution and eliminate much of the which means waste and duplicate charges. Cooperation can dc more than any other agency to standardize the product, achieving uniformity of quality which means more money for Ike same amount cress-handli- 0( goods, ng Encourage Home patron- izing the ones you already have. UINTAH CREAMERY COMPANY C. NEOLA J. Nelson, Mgr. UTAH " 7 |