Rejjort of Missouri Farmers' Week. 501 



on the venture. He does this in the hope that he can encourage 

 the farmer to "take it out in trade" and by selling his goods at a 

 higher price, realize a profit on the deal. This method not only- 

 places a premium upon bad eggs but works an injustice on the 

 customers of the store who are compelled, because of this practice, 

 to pay a higher price for their goods than they would if the store- 

 keeper did not mark them up in order to come out even on. his egg 

 operations. Eggs are bought in most cases just as they come 

 from the farm — good, bad and indifferent — and the result is that 

 the eggs when collected into the depots are usually an uneven lot in 

 size, color and condition. As long as the present system of buying 

 is used, there can be little hope for the elimination of the present 

 enormous losses. Until some scheme is devised which will cause 

 the producer of good eggs to realize a greater benefit and the 

 producer of bad eggs to stand the loss because of his carelessness, 

 the egg industry will not approach its possibilities. So far the 

 writer has been speaking relative to the general conditions in the 

 State. In some sections, however, there has been adopted a system 

 known as the "loss-off system" of buying, a practice which results 

 in the eggs being candled as they are brought in, the good ones 

 accepted at a higher price and the bad ones turned back to the 

 person who produced them. It is interesting to note that in those 

 sections the quality of eggs has much improved. Where the system 

 is fully understood, there exists a greater harmony between the 

 producer and the egg buyer. Many firms candle eggs as they come 

 in but make the mistake of not explaining to the producer that he 

 is getting a higher price than he would were they not candled. 

 Where the buying is done by an egg dealer and not through the 

 grocery store, this practice seems to be working satisfactorily. 

 However, where the egg dealer and grocer are both working in the 

 same town, the grocer generally pays more for the eggs than the 

 egg dealer can afford to pay, making his profit by the goods which 

 he sells. It is thus seen how difficult it is to establish a quality 

 basis for buying eggs under those conditions. This is the status 

 of egg marketing in Missouri. 



The success of those who have produced eggs is largely due 

 to the marketing facilities. Missouri has unusual accessibility to 

 markets. There are twenty-three railroads running into the 

 Union Station at St. Louis, affording the Missouri poultryman a 

 market form Chicago to New Orleans and east to the Atlantic. Ten 

 railroads enter Kansas City and cover the territory south to Gal- 

 veston and west to the Pacific. 



