COOPERATIVES: EARLY PHASES 73 



number was almost double that of any other state and nearly one-third 

 of the total in the country. In 1914, 42 per cent of the Minnesota farmers 

 were patrons of the cooperative creameries, which comprised 72 per cent 

 of all creameries in the state. Because of this situation, the butter industry 

 in Minnesota was controlled by the farmers to a greater degree than in 

 any other state. These cooperatives, after about thirty years of operation, 

 formed the foundation for the Land O'Lakes Creameries, Incorporated, 

 "probably the greatest butter marketing organization in the world." 3 



The cooperative movement among the dairy producers of Iowa was far 

 behind those of both Wisconsin and Minnesota. Lacking the high quality 

 of leadership which characterized the movements in these states, it endured 

 a long period of trial and error. Nevertheless the Iowa dairy producers 

 had certain common grievances which tended to bind them together. 

 They were often kept waiting a full month before they learned the quality 

 of the milk they sold and almost an equally long time before they knew 

 what prices they were to be paid. If they objected to the price, there was 

 little they could do about it; if there was any inaccuracy, waste, or dis- 

 honesty in handling their produce, all they could do was to complain, or 

 go elsewhere and be treated worse. The cause for "nine-tenths" of the 

 Iowa dairy farmer's dissatisfaction, according to one observer, was sus- 

 picion over the testing of his milk. Efforts to regulate the method of testing 

 proved unsuccessful, and the discontented farmer, however groundless his 

 suspicion, was on the alert for some means to redress the grievance he 

 felt. Nor was this the only complaint. Sometimes the farmer suffered 

 from insufficient competition among dealers, sometimes from excessive 

 competition. Sometimes there was a lack of satisfactory outlets. The "one- 

 price system" of paying for butterfat also caused great indignation. Often 

 farmers producing high-grade cream received no premium whatsoever, a 

 policy which naturally checked any incentive to improve the quality. 37 



Once the advantages of the cooperative creamery became apparent, 

 whether in Iowa or elsewhere, promoters of various types began to invade 



36. Boss, in Minnesota Bulletin 319, pp. 34-35; Weld, in Minnesota Bulletin 146, 

 pp. 6-7. 



37. Iowa Department of Agriculture, Iowa Yearbook of Agriculture, 1902, pp. 

 471-73; Frank Robotka and Gordon C. Laughlin, Cooperative Organization of Iowa 

 Farmers' Creameries, Farm Credit Administration, Cooperative Division, Bulletin 

 14 (Washington, 1932), p. i. 



