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THE BEE-KEEPER'S REVIEW 



Ontario, Canada, bee keepers have 

 taken a step in the right direction 

 towards securing uniformity of prices. 

 They have a committee whose duty is 

 that of gathering crop statistics, studying 

 market conditions, and deciding upon 

 what is considered a fair price for the 

 different grades of honey. This scale 

 of prices is not binding upon any one. 

 but it furnishes a basis upon which to 

 establish prices. The buyer says "What 

 do you ask for your honey?" Often, I 

 might say, usually, the ordinary bee 

 keeper doesn't really know how much he 

 ought to ask for his honey, but how easy 

 for him now to say "The honey commit- 

 tee decided that we ought to have ten 

 cents for our white extracted honey. "' 

 This plan helps to give confidence to the 

 buyer, as he feels that some competitor 

 will not be likely to buy much, if any, 

 honey at a lower price than that set by the 

 committee. At our last Michigan, State 

 Bee Keepers' convention, it was voted 

 that the executive committee should 

 meet early in the fall, take into considera- 

 tion the production of honey for the 

 season, the conditions of the markets, 

 and then advise each member as to 

 what, in their opinion, would be a fair 

 price for their honey. 



The quality of the honey, and the 

 manner in which it is put up, while not 

 coming under the head of marketing, 

 have a wonderful bearing upon its sale. 

 If bee keepers could only see the dealer's 

 end of the marketing problem it would 

 open their eyes. Some of them would 

 understand why their honey was of slow 

 sale at a low price. I think there are 

 few bee keepers whose methods of pre- 

 paring their honey for market would not 

 be improved by working one season in 

 some house that deals largely in honey. 



Returning again to the marketing 

 question, the time was when low prices 

 were laid to the bee keepers all rushing 

 their honey into the city markets at once, 

 at the close of the season, thus causing a 

 glut, and the bee journals all united in 

 advising the holding back of the crops 



until the rush was over. It is possible 

 that such a condition did obtain years 

 ago, but it is far from being true at the 

 present time. As a rule, the man who 

 "gets left" now is the one who holds his 

 honey until after the holidays. Of course, 

 prices may go up or down as the season 

 advances, and it is difficult to always 

 sell at the time of highest prices, but I 

 think Mr. Facey of Minnesota, gives the 

 best advice on that subject. He says 

 that when the price is above normal, and 

 going higher, sell. If it is below normal, 

 and falling, hold on. The theory is that 

 prices tend towards the normal. If un- 

 usually high, they are likely to drop; if 

 too low, they will come up again. 



Last year there was a short crop of 

 honey, and I see, by looking over the 

 reports, that the markets are practically 

 bare of honey; with prices pretty well up. 

 The first honey on the market will prob- 

 ably meet with ready sale at a good 

 price. Perhaps prices can't be raised 

 this year, but I certainly, think that they 

 ought to be maintained, considering the 

 high prices at which other commodities 

 are sold. Of course, the size of the crop 

 that is harvested will have a great bear- 

 ing upon prices. Virgil Weaver prog- 

 nosticates a big crop this year from 

 clover, and I'm inclined to his belief, but 

 the extent of the Western crops will also 

 have an influence. Certain it is that the 

 man who puts his crop on the market 

 early this year will not make a big 

 mistake. 



The Review is published to help its 

 readers make of their business a more 

 safe, pleasant and profitable pursuit, and 

 if it can aid them in getting a higher 

 price for their honey it will be fully as 

 helpful as in teaching them how to pro- 

 duce larger crops. I wish that every 

 subscriber who feels that he has solved 

 the marketing problem, or that he has 

 partly solved it, or can offer any sug- 

 gestion, would write it out for the 

 Review. I am ready to pay, and pay 

 liberally, for anything of value on the 

 marketing question. 



