MISCELLANEOUS NEWS 21 



2. MISCELIyANEOUS NEWvS. 



I. — The CALIFORNIA FRUIT GROWERS' EXCHANGE. — The report 

 of the Secretary for the year ending Aiigust 31, 191 3, show that this Ex- 

 change has strenghened its position in the CaUfornia citrus-fruit industry 

 in spite of the fact that the season under review had threatened to prove 

 disastrous to the growers. 



In the autumn of 1912 the Exchange made detailed arrangements for 

 marketing the new crop, estimating that it would be called upon to ship 

 34,000 carloads or over 13 million boxes of fruit. Destructive winds and a 

 sudden spell of cold weather caused widespread damage to the crop, with 

 the result that the Fruit Growers' Exchange actually sold, in round num- 

 bers, only 5 million boxes, or about 38 per cent, of the nmnber estimated. 

 Nevertheless the Exchange sold 65.5 per cent, of all the citrus fruit shipped 

 from CaUfornia during the year, this forming the highest proportion of the 

 total crop which it has ever handled. The proportion has increased 

 steadily from 47 per cent, in 1905. 



As a result of the short crop good prices were obtained, the average 

 price per box for all fruit sold by the Exchange being $ 2.75, which is 5 

 per cent, higher than the average for the preceding eight years. In spite 

 of the fact that for a time the market was totally disorganized by exagger- 

 ated reports of crop destruction, and by the operations of speculative deal- 

 ers, the losses suffered by the Exchange were insignificant, amounting, 

 from bad debts and all other causes, to only $ 390. The presence of a 

 large proportion of frosted fruit made the work of grading extremely dif- 

 ficult, and huge losses and complete disorganization were only avoided by 

 the rigid supennsion exercised by the local associations over all packing 

 operations, and by the excellent selling arrangements of the Exchange 

 itself. 



The cost of maintaining the Exchange during the j-ear 1912-1913 

 amounted to 7 % cents per box for all citrus fruits, an amount equal to 2 

 per cent, of the gross sales. These figures cover all the expenses of the 

 central Exchange — the cost of conducting an advertising campaign, 

 legal expenses, and contributions to the Citrus Protective League included. 

 Adding the cost of maintaining the district exchanges, which in 1912-13 was 

 1.3 cents per box, the total cost of marketing to the growers was less than 

 2 "/g per cent, of the gross sales, or 3.13 per cent, of the net receipts at the 

 sliipping point. 



According to the report of the secretary of the Exchange this is the 

 lowest marketing cost for any agricultural product in the United States. 

 The average cost of marketing citrus fruits rarely falls below 5 per cent., 



