Show FARM FARM OPERATIVE CO-OPERATIVE OPERA CO-OPERA TIVE SELLING By y GLENN G. G HAYES I Y Q 1924 Western Vestern Newspaper Union I Ij j More Than Million Minion Farmers Farmer Are Interested A LECTURER fresh from an nn eastern I city was telling a n. group of Middle l Western Vestern farmers how to manage mannge the Ule business of farming no Boys s he said I have always found that if If a n fellow has hns a hard time timekeeping timekeeping keeping his head above water Its It's time for him to learn to keep out of at the deep places t tA A tall haired gray farmer rose from his scat seat Just a minute Mr 2 Speaker you Speaker you have us farmers all wrong We e arent aren't afraid of the deep water That's where we wc do 10 our best swimming We Ve all belong to op co-op cooperative cooperative opera co era era- tive U marketing associations Perhaps you ou didn't know that they thc furnish life preservers for the thc fellows that cant can't swim aloneA aloneA alone A uA million farmers farJ ers kept afloat that wa way during 1 1023 1923 3 The farmer was right More than a n million American farmers have learned to keep up In deep water They Ther are the men who are making operative co marketing the greatest farm organization organIzation organization In the world Last year ear Go 65 per cent of the citrus fruit produced In the United States 80 SO per cent of the dried fruit m nearly arly three-fourths three of the tobacco one half u. u or of tile milk ana butter hutter 10 lu per cent of at the live Jive stock 1 15 per cent of the cotton GO per cent of th the the- nuts and large amounts of su such h products as ns fruits ergs eggs wool and vegetables traveled traveled trav trav- the operative co-operative road rand to market California Leads There are arc now el eight ht great grent national operative co-operative exchanges es and state federations Territorial groups number number number num num- ber over 11 while local marketing associations total over l California Call Cali fornia leads all nIl other states In the volume volume volume vol vol- ume of operatively co-operatively marketed products products products prod prod- last year sending half halt of her crop to market through operative co-operative channels The dried fruit industries have the largest percentage of their groups groups com com completely organized Ninety per cent of the raisins 85 per cent of the prunes and SO 80 per cent of at the dried figs peaches and apricots are marketed co co- co- co operatively Second best among the farmers' farmers organized organized or or- industries are the tobacco groups of the South and East TakIng Taking Taking Tak Tak- ing the association as a whole they represent growers glowers Seventy per cent of all the tobacco used in inthe inthe inthe the United States was handled through h these associations during 1 1923 3 All this great work of tobacco organization tion lion has been done In a period of less than two years Perhaps the third best or organized American commodity Is the nut Indus indus- try Over 90 00 per cent of the American American Ameri Amerl- can cnn almonds 95 5 per cent rent of at the walnuts wal- wal walnuts wal nuts and CO GO per cent of the jumbo white peanuts are handled through the farmers' farmers marketing associations Interstate and state dairy groups are now marketing one-fourth one of at the nations nation's milk and butter supply DurIng During During Dur Dur- ing 19 1923 there were nearly OO cooperative cooperative cooperative co co- co- co operative milk marketing associations 1010 1610 operative co-operative creameries and over 2800 operative co-operative cheese factories Plans are now under way for the forming of 01 a a. national operative co-operative I I dairy sales a agency ency to handle the busness business bus busi ness of all the operative co The wheat marketing machine has barely made mude Its start Yet between four and five per cent of the nations nation's wheat was handled by operatives co-operatives during the past season Today there aro two national or organizations an anti and twelve state units Plans are now under under under un un- un- un der way for the consolidation of all the wheat organizations Into one unit under the direction of Uie the National Wheat Growers Growers' Advisory committee tee In every grain section of the country country country coun coun- try are the local farmers farmers' elevator companies some tome 5 lG of them In all These elevators have a membership of over and a capital of ot 00 00 O- O Tho annual value of the grain handled averages over 6 G In 1 1922 1022 the California Fruit Growers Growers' Growers Growers' Grow Grow- ers ers' exchange marketed 68 GS per cent of the citrus fruit of the state and a n group of at other operatives co-operatives han handed ted between 10 and 15 per cent of the crop In n Florida 40 per cent of the citrus crop was marketed ted through h an association of growers rowelS Fully G 65 per percent percent percent cent of the citrus crop In the United States goes to market through a pool Fruit Also Handled Fresh Flesh fruit associations Include more than separate local units and about a n dozen larger er or organizations More than 25 per cent of California's deciduous fruits are arc sold by the time California California Cali Cali- fornia Fruit exchange e alone Sixty- Sixty five per cent of the peach crop In the state of Georgia travels the tile cooperative cooperative cooperative opera co tive road to market Sixty per cent of the pears and berries of ot western Oregon one one fourth of at New Yorks York's grapes 35 per cent of California's pears and a good share of or its berries are handled co ely 1 The e past year 12 per cent of the cotton crop was marketed through the cotton pools In Texas where 25 per percent percent percent cent of ot th the nations nation's crop Is grown 1 12 per cent of the states state's acreage II IB is signed up under a year five-year contract The American Cotton Growers' Growers exchange exchange ex ex- ex- ex change acts nets as ns an overhead agency forthe tor for the 12 member state associations In 1923 more than 10 per cent of at ofte te- te the tale yearly American wool clip was wn pooled by the thc growers Four thousand shipping associations in the North Central Central Cen Cen- states send 25 per cent of or all the tho live stock sold Bold In the terminal markets Thero There are dozens of at operative co marketing marl mar mar- l associations for the hanging handling of at vegetables 1 poultry hay rice and seeds Recently a national sales agency for selling fruit and vegetables for the various local and sectional associations opened offices in 11 1 mar mar- Thero There are now 14 wide state-wide potato e. e exchanges changes and plans for a una- una na national national na- na federation have been drawn up sixth One-sixth of the pounds of rice produced annually In the tho United States Is marketed co operatively The pa past pait t year eggs laid by ten million million mil mil- lion hens in ill a n dozen states were pooled for market Last year ear Pacific coast I sent 1000 carloads of at white eggs through the operative co channel to New York Large Sums for Advertising Along with the expert salesmen the farmer fanner Is hiring expert advertising ad men to handle great grent sales sules campaigns to sell producer brands of raisins an and oranges and butter and ice cream and I prunes Producers are ure standardizing their products and find advertising their brands both nationally and In one year ear 1 1922 2 four of the operative co organizations alone spent over four million dollars on advertis advertis- ing Two and one half million was spent by the Sun Maid raisin growers During the past nine years ears over seven and a half million dollars have been spent advertising Sun Maid raisins The California Fruit Growers' Growers exchange exchange ex ex- change representing the citrus growers growers growers grow grow- ers of the state appropriated over o for advertising In l 1922 The appropriation for 1 1923 3 slI slightly exceeded exceeded ex ex- this amount The prune growers growers growers grow grow- ers of California spent telling the story stor of Sunsweet prunes The TheDah Dah Dairymen's mens league of Utica N. N Y appropriated appropriated ap up- last year for advertising advertising advertising ad ad- raw and staple semi milk products I It Isn't cas easy to grasp the proportions I nf of thA the r co n movement f In a I VA vl ov short decade these great corporations i have risen out of the yellow gold of at I wheat fields from the orange and lemon and prune orchards of the West from the Southern fields of at tobacco whose members mem mem- members and cotton cotton corporations corporations bers are the tillers WIers of the field the keepers of ot the orchards whose billion- billion dollar business Is managed by experts and controlled by Its farmer members In In another ten years the American fanner will wUl be the merchant prince of the world The security back of his million-dollar million enterprises will be the support of every man JUan who tills the soil and the produce of ever every acre that stretches across Ute tine plains that lie between between between be be- tween the Atlantic and Pacific oceans At last the farmer has hus perfected a n systematic method of collective e sellIng sell- sell sellIng selling Ing which gets results for him He Heill will ill never rest until all his major products are ure handled through his own sales silles department |