Obstacles To Fair 

 Livestock Prices 



By R. C. Ashby, University of Illinois, before annual meeting 

 Chicago Producers Commission Association 



^ TATKMPLNI" of iho .subject of thi;. 

 /^ paper immediately raises two fiues- 

 tioris: (1) what is meant by ob- 

 .-taclcs: (2( what are fair livestock 

 pricoK. For purposes of this (liscussioii 

 obstacles are any hiiiihaiucs or imi)e(li- 

 riicnts that delay or prtvi !it neede<l ac- 

 coiiiplishmeiu. In seriousness they may 

 range from simple detours on the mar- 

 ket hiehway to complete washouts. Fair 

 prices are assumed to be those which 

 would prevail if every group which op- 

 erates between livestock producers and 

 meat consumeis was so orcanized and 

 so operated as to remier maximum serv- 

 ice in the mnst effective an<i most eco- 

 nomical manner possible. 



Actually most groups now operating 

 between stockmen and consumers "(ire 

 .-eckinp ma.\inium financial returns, and 

 are rendering service only in proportion 

 as it promises to expand such returns, 

 llie resulting conflicts of interests be- 

 tween groups make difficult the develop- 

 ment of frank and open-minded discus- 

 sion of the problems at issue. Yet such 

 discussion is essential to effective solu- 

 tion. 



That the need of such approach is real- 

 ized in the meat packing industry i- 

 shown by the two statements that fol 

 low. Said a well-known eastern packer: 

 ■'The meat packing imlustry cannot 

 really be on a permanently satisfactory 

 I'asi.s until all groups — stockmen, pack- 

 ers, retailers and consum«rs — understand 

 the primar.v problems involved, and co- 

 operate in meeting them." A nationall.v 

 known Iowa packer operator says; 

 "Whether we agree or disagree on cer- 

 tain angles of livestock marketing is 

 secondary to the honest presentation of 

 facts as we see them. It is only by the 

 continued practice of this policy that 

 fair-minded men can eventually agree 

 upon a plan that will advance the inter 

 osts of Agriculture." 



It is in the spirit of those two state- 

 ments that this presentation is undertaken. 



Since any defect in current livestock 

 marketing practice may. and usuitlly 

 Hoes, constitute an obstacle to fair prices, 

 the number of obstacles that might be 

 enumerated is large. Kight of the more 

 important ones have bccti selected for 

 consideration here. 



First, because of absence of a cleai 

 undertanding of basic livestock market- 

 ing problems and lack of adequate and 

 accurate markot information, too many 

 stockmen and farmers are themselves 

 often obstacles to fair livestock prices. 

 .Nor is this so surprising. It is largely 

 within the last twenty years that any 

 considerable number of stockmen have 

 begun to regard livestock marketiiig a.- 

 "any of their business." .And twenty 

 years is a short time in which to inform 

 thousands of producers regarding a busi 

 iiess so intricate, so complicated, and so 

 complex as that of marketing —process- 

 ing - distributing some 7.'> million head 

 of meat animals slaughtered annually 

 und«r I'nited States feileral inspection. 



One of the keenest analysts in tin 

 livestock marketing field reiently re 

 marked; "Lack of clearer understanding 

 on the part of stockmen of the man.\ 

 phases of livesto«.-k marketing is due part- 

 ly to the fact that market men have tiot, 

 as a (rroup, undertaken to give stock- 

 men dependable and complete livestock 

 marketing information: partly to the 

 fact that concerns buying livestock fi-i'ni 



IN THE WAY 





Here is a lhouuht-pro\ okiiii: ar- 

 ticle on a much discussed and high- 

 ly intereslini! qiiestiim — liveslock 

 marketini:. In it. Trof. .\shby 

 makes a good ra»e lor market Iim: 

 through -tr«»n){ farmer-o»ned co- 

 operatives, whether the> be organ- 

 ized in the countrj or al the termi- 

 nal markets. The author cmphali- 

 rally discounts packer aru'umenis 

 that the farmer will uel a fair 

 price regardless of how and « here 

 he sells his lixestock. His -tudie~ 

 show that there are « ide tlurtua- 

 tions in prices al different mar- 

 kets. The farmer ha« a better 

 chance l« irel what hi- li\estork 

 is worth by support ins; the ro-op- 

 erative agencies that arc workinj; 

 for him. — Kditor. 



-tockiiiei: l,u\c presetited u;iiy their .-ide 

 of the picture —packers are engaged in 

 buying livestock in the mar.ner which 

 ■ ippenrs to result in bwest cost, and 

 their presentation <.f marketing jiroblcnis 

 is necessarily colored to serve th<'ir in- 

 ii-rests: part of the fault 'a chargeable 

 \'i agricultuiiil colleges whi<-h have re- 

 leased loosely thought-out data; publica- 

 tions of some professors on livestock 

 inarketiii'.; have not reached the depth 

 that might have been expected: aid the 

 Bureau of .A.gricultu! al K<onomics has 

 not helped threat ly." 



On the other band, there i- more wide- 

 spread interest in marketing problenr 

 than has been evident previously. Slo.-k- 

 inen apj)arently want to know where arnl 

 how they can iret dept'ndalile informa- 

 tion. It must be obtained from many 

 sources, and stockmen mii-t b :irn to ap- 

 ply the acid test before accenting aily 

 i>f it- to ask who is the author: whom 

 does he represent: what are the inter- 

 ests of the organization or corporation 

 behind him: are they presentintr the 

 whole picture or .iust part of it. Miire 

 and more propagandic material is like- 

 ly to be circulated. Only accurately in 

 formed stockmet. will l-e able to recoi; 

 nize it as such. 



Further. «e ha\e tlie riuhl to evjieit 

 that our agricultural colleges and ex 

 periment stations will employ as re-pon 

 sible livestock marketing n«?n- whether 

 research, teacbinu or extension — only 

 those who have a thorousrh fir<t hand 

 knowledjre of livestock niaikei* and of 

 livestock marketina The time h^is passed 

 when anyone endowed with a I^h. M. it; 

 Kconomic- i-- per se an authority ..n li-.i-- 

 stock marketing problem-. The i|Ua!it,> 

 of our institutional marketina work 

 would lie ffreatly impr"'V«-il if it were 

 possible to require that every worker, 

 before appointment to a responsible posi- 

 tion, should have l:ad at lea.-t two \<.i^r^ 

 successful experience iii actual <oirjn;cr 

 cial marketing service. In Illinois no man 

 is accepted for appointment as a farm 

 tidviser until he hn< had ."i years pra. 



MAV, I'j:!.-; 



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