482 



Missouri Agricultural Report. 



tive cream-selling association. We felt that we should have some- 

 thing to say as to what price we should receive for our products. 



The Ozark Dairy Association was organized for the purpose of 

 selling cream, and for four years we successfully sold our cream 

 under contract and our membership grew from a few to 723. We 

 met with strong opposition in the beginning. Merchants every- 

 where would discourage the farmers. However, we raised the 

 price of cream and increased our membership in spite of all opposi- 

 tion. We sold our cream as an organization and received an aver- 

 age of 11/2 cents below Elgin prices. But last year when we met 

 to sell our cream we could find no one to buy it, so had to build a 

 creamery. This creamery is now completed, has been in operation 

 a little over two months and is now doing very well. We made a 

 success as a cream-selling organization. How successful we will 

 be operating a creamery, I will tell you next year. 



Result of Successful Co-operation In the Ozarks. 



Since our organization the farmers have gained confidence in 

 the dairy business and it has increased very rapidly. This has in- 

 creased the demand for feed, for we have found that we can pro- 

 duce roughage and buy mill feed cheaper than we can raise all the 

 feed. Soon men took advantage of this and feed stores sprung up 

 everywhere, and we had to pay a big profit to the dealer, sometimes 

 as high as 30 cents a sack. This led to the organization of a supply 

 company at Diggins, Mo. We have now been in operation two and 

 one-half years and have done well. We handle nearly everything 



