Page Sixteen 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



St. Louis Consumers' 



Commission Reports 



Presents Interesting Analysis of 

 Milk Situation at That Market 



A STRIKING picture of the St. 

 Louis milk market, and condi- 

 tions surrounding the production and 

 marketing of milk, is presented in the 

 report of the Consumers' Milk Com- 

 mission of St. Louis released on August 

 6. The repHjrt signed by Mrs. George 

 Gellhorn, Mrs. W. W. Burke and Mrs. 

 Virgil Loeb, chairman, all prominent in 

 local club circles, is an intelligent 

 analysis arrived at after careful investi- 

 gation. 



A few large firms distributing 8 5 

 per cent of the milk consumed in St. 

 Louis, with nearly 40 smaller dairies 

 distributing the other 15 per cent; and 

 out in the country some 12,000 farm- 

 ers, each with a few cows, each dis- 

 posing separately of his milk at the 

 price offered him, is the picture drawn 

 by the commission. "These farmers," 

 states the report, "usually operate farms 

 on which dairying is a side line. They 

 are scattered through nearly 20 coun- 

 ties of Missouri 'and Illinois, some of 

 them nearly 150 miles from, the city. 



Unregulated Production 



"Time-honored methods still in use 

 by many farmers result in an over- 

 supply of milk at certain periods which 

 in turn has a tendency to reduce the 

 price paid for the product. The amount 

 of time and labor necessary to produce 

 this milk is enormous and the laborers 

 include the farmer, his wife and his 

 children. Cleanliness, according to 

 modern standards for milk, takes time 

 and also demands improvements which 

 many of the farmers have not had the 

 money to obtain. 



"The individual farmer feels him- 

 self at a disadvantage, not only in the 

 matter of price, but also in lack of 

 knowledge of market information, of 

 credit ratings of distributors, and in 

 checking the weights and testing of the 

 farmer's product which heretofore have 

 been entirely in the hands of the dealers. 



Dealers Satisfied 



"The distributors, on the other hand, 

 have appeared generally satisfied with 

 conditions as they are, with only an oc- 

 casional doubt in regard to the situa- 

 tion. Prices paid to the producer have 

 been the same throughout the market, 

 set apparently by common consent of 

 the large dealers and accepted by the 

 smaller. Though their past experience 

 of dealing with producers in groups 

 has not been satisfactory they seem to 

 have no qualms as to the wisdom of 



Jas. C. Stone 



S. H. TlioiiiiiNuii 



JAMES C. STONE, vice-chairman of 

 the Federal Farm Board and former- 

 ly manager of the Burley Tobacco 

 Growers' Association of Kentucky, has 

 been engaged for two speaking dates at 

 Farm Bureau district picnics to be held 

 at Monmouth on August 29 and at 

 Jacksonville on August 30. 



Sam Thompson, president of the 

 American Farm Bureau Federation, will 

 be the speaker at the 19th district pic- 

 nic to be held in Crystal Lake Park, 

 Urbana, Champaign county, August 

 27. Secretary M. S. Winder of the A. 

 F. B. F. spoke at the 2 5 th district pic- 

 nic, Sparta, on August 14. 



President Earl C. Smith, who is con- 

 valescing in a private hospital in Chi- 

 cago following an operation, has been 

 forced to cancel all his picnic speaking 

 dat$s. These have been assigned to 

 Secretary Metzger and other members 

 of the I. A. A. staff. 



extending the milk shed when it was 

 to their advantage to obtain milk from 

 more distant sources. 



"The commission felt not only that 

 the consumer was entitled to good milk 

 of high quality at a fair price but also 

 that consumers desired this situation 

 under conditions that brought no hard- 

 ship to any one concerned. It felt that 

 the interest of the public in an article 

 so important to the health of the con- 

 sumer is most essential, therefore, the 

 public should be represented in confer- 

 ences dealing with milk." 



Can Increase Use 



The commission draws attention to 

 the fact that the per capita consump- 

 tion of milk in St. Louis is lower than 

 in other cities and that with quality 

 improvement and judicious advertising 

 people would consume more healthful 

 dairy products. The commission gives 

 its unqualified endorsement to the plan 

 of collective bargaining as a fair meth- 

 od of establishing a price acceptable to 

 producer, dealer and consumer.' It rec- 

 ommends a plan to secure more even 

 production of milk throughout the 

 year and suggests that responsibility for 

 this goal rests with the farmer. 



The commission's report cites testi- 

 mony of individual farmers revealing 



that many are receiving no profit from 

 their milk while others are losing 

 money. "The commission is con- 

 vinced that the producer should re- 

 ceive more money for his product," 

 states the report, "but is not con- 

 vinced that the increase should be 

 made through higher prices to the 

 consumer." 



Four Conferences 



During the course of the investiga- 

 tion, four conferences lasting from six 

 to eight hours each were held. Pro- 

 ducers, dealers and consumers were rep- 

 resented. The plan as outlined else- 

 where in this issue was finally adopted. 

 . Commenting on the agreement be- 

 tween the producers and distributors 

 which is similar to the base and surplus 

 plan followed at Chicago, Pittsburgh 

 and other large markets, the Consumers' 

 Commission said the agreement has 

 been accepted by the larger dealers with 

 the sole exception of the Pevely Dairy 

 Company, and its acceptance by the 

 smaller dairies is confidently expected. 

 "If the Pevely Dairy Company does not 

 co-operate with the other dealers, pro- 

 ducers and consumers in establishing the 

 National Dairy Council, its non-partici- 

 pation in this quality dairy program 

 will put it in a rather indefensible posi- 

 tion. It has been the experience in 

 other cities that sometimes one larger 

 dealer has taken longer than the others 

 to see the value of such a plan as is 

 here imposed, but this fact has not 

 impaired the plan in other cities nor 

 will it delay its successful working out 

 in St. Louis. I 



A New Era 



"The commission believes that the 

 agreement means the beginning of a 

 new era of good will between the dis- 

 tributors and producers in the St. Louis 

 milk shed and that it will be a benefit 

 to all parties concerned. To the pro- 

 ducers it represents an opportunity to 

 realize their aims; to the distributor it 

 represents an opportunity for a stabil- 

 ized market and reduction of surplus; 

 and the consumer, who pays the 13c 

 for a quart of milk is given a voice in 

 its just distribution. To the communi- 

 ty as a whole it means an improved 

 milk supply with St. Louis taking its 

 place among other cities of the coun- 

 try in the establishment of an equitable 

 and orderly marketing plan. The Con- ■ 

 sumers' Mlik Commission has a continu- 

 ing responsibility in seeing that this 

 plan is carried out which it accepts as 

 a duty and privilege." 



Thos. H. Roberts, for more than 

 seven years adviser in DeKalb county, 

 resigned some time ago to manage a 

 canning factory at Sycamore. 



