Missouri State Board of Horticulture. 383 



of operation, equitable distribution and the lessening of much 

 wasteful competition. 



Of these methods enumerated the exchange plan must 

 appear as that having the most advantages. We have but to 

 look about to determine the effectiveness of such combinations 

 of fruit growing interests. 



Let us first refer to California, where exists the commonly 

 accepted ideal growers' marketing organization, the California 

 Fruit Growers' Exchange, with headquarters at Los Angeles. 

 The California Fruit Growers' Exchange is a co-operative body 

 of approximately six thousand fruit growers distributed among 

 over one hundred local associations within the state. 



Through its strength of number and consequent tonnage 

 shipped over a period of ten months in a year this federation 

 of growers is enabled to and does maintain offices of its own in 

 the principal marketing centers. This established selling force 

 largely facilitates equitable distribution among the markets 

 and, excepting a small percentage handled through auctions in 

 a few of the largest cities, the fruit of the growers, members of 

 the exchange, is disposed of through outright sale in car lots to 

 local wholesalers, prices being governed practically by supply 

 and demand. 



The exchange is a formation of seventeen districts, or sub- 

 exchanges comprising one hundred seventeen local associations 

 within the state, all operated on a nonprofit co-operative basis 

 and shipping collectively in a normal season about twenty 

 thousand carloads of fruit. It should be noted that the success 

 of this organization is largely attributable to the thoroughness 

 of this exchange's selling organization and to the binding con- 

 tract existing between the association and its members, there 

 being little opportunity for a degression on the part of the 

 growers, a harmful practice so common to members of co- 

 operative bodies in some states. 



In Florida may be found a somewhat similar organization 

 of citrus fruit growers comprising nine exchanges, attached to 

 which are about sixty local associations, but with less than 

 twenty per cent of the state's crop under control. With this 

 limited tonnage, moving as it does within a short period of the 

 year, the Florida exchange is only warranted in operating but 

 a few sales offices of its own, using principally for an outlet for 

 the growers' fruit the auctions of a few of the larger markets. 



