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The record of the forest cooperatives 

 might have been different had not 

 general economic conditions taken a 

 sharp upturn as a result of the Second 

 World War. The market conditions 

 that brought about their organization 

 changed rapidly, and the chief prob- 

 lem and reason for organizing, that of 

 marketing, was wiped out. Improved 

 markets for farm products and a short 

 labor supply found many small timber- 

 land owners spending less of their ef- 

 forts on harvesting forest crops. The 

 important benefit of supplementing 

 incomes by getting a labor return (as 

 well as stumpage) from the wood lots 

 was lost. Lost also was the sustaining 

 interest of the members. 



THE BASIC PRINCIPLES of the suc- 

 cessful organization and operation 

 have been learned from the long and 

 successful record of farm cooperatives. 



The experience records of forest 

 cooperatives, though short by compari- 

 son, clearly show that the same 

 principles are just as applicable and 

 important to success. They boil down 

 to a few fundamentals : 



Membership must be open to all 

 who will actively participate in the or- 

 ganization, and active leaders must be 

 found who are able and willing to con- 

 tribute to the benefits of all members. 



There should be a common interest 

 among members in the services offered 

 and products handled. 



The principle of "one member, one 

 vote" and general equality among the 

 members should be followed. 



Cooperatives are in themselves non- 

 profit undertakings and must pursue 

 a course that will render services to 

 members at cost. 



Because success depends on the use 

 members make of their organization, 

 savings should be distributed to mem- 

 bers on the basis of their patronage. 



Cooperatives should operate in a 

 conservative manner and assume no 

 unusual risks. Safe reserves must be 

 carried, and expansion or new ven- 

 tures by the cooperative should be 

 carefully explored. 



Yearbook^ of Agriculture 1949 



Partisan and sectarian differences 

 have no place in cooperatives. Har- 

 mony in obtaining objectives is a criti- 

 cal issue and the organization should 

 be viewed strictly as a business venture 

 for mutual economic benefit. 



There is little chance for success if 

 the cooperative does not carry on a sus- 

 tained and vigorous program of edu- 

 cation. Goals should be kept constantly 

 before the members and efforts made 

 to teach better practices in producing 

 and harvesting forest products. Only 

 well-informed members can be good 

 members. 



The cooperative must develop ade- 

 quate marketing facilities if it is to 

 render full service to members. 



To warrant organization, a cooper- 

 ative, like any other business, must 

 have a sufficient volume of business. 

 The long-time social and economic 

 benefits that can be derived from forest 

 conservation may be considered as 

 desirable byproducts of the forest-man- 

 agement programs of forest coopera- 

 tives, but immediate economic consid- 

 erations will determine the success of 

 the cooperative as a business. 



Before organization is undertaken, 

 investigation should be made to deter- 

 mine the existence of satisfactory local 

 markets. Do local plants adequately 

 utilize the forest products to be mar- 

 keted? Do they follow practices that 

 assure a fair return to producers and 

 encourage better forest management? 

 Is there a surplus of material over and 

 above that which can be satisfactorily 

 handled through established market 

 outlets? If not, could a cooperative fill 

 the gaps? 



An inventory of forest resources in 

 the area is of great importance. Spe- 

 cific information needed is where the 

 timber is located, species available and 

 proportion of each, condition of tim- 

 ber, and whether there is a surplus 

 beyond the needs of the individual 

 owners. Techniques using aerial photo- 

 graphs are now available that will 

 provide much of this information 

 accurately and inexpensively. 



It is equally important to study the 



