New Hampshire is in the late potato zone which means that the bulk 

 ot the supplies are available from September through April. The price 

 tends to increase from September to January, then evens off. Hotels, restau- 

 rants, and wholesalers can facilitate their procurement activities from a 

 steady source of supply. The storage function must generally rest with the 

 producer or wholesaler and the risk of spoilage is borne by them. The de- 

 cision whether or not to store is generally related to the kind of trade out- 

 let the producer may have. A wholesaler who has storage capacity may do 

 most of his buying in the fall when prices are relatively low. Some of 

 the larger New Hampshire growers sell their crops to a jobber as they are 

 dug, thus shifting the risk of price changes and spoilage. Other growers 

 have agreements to supply regular amounts during the year and have de- 

 veloped their storage accordingly. To recommend storage as a good market- 

 ing practice for producers would be correct only if the net returns from 

 the crop could be increased, which, in turn, will depend upon the cost of 

 storage facilities, market outlets, and changes in price as the season develops. 

 With a small acreage it could well be more economical to sell in the fall 

 and to consolidate the supplies and risk in the hands of experienced wholc' 

 salers. H storage facilities are available on the farm and the space will not 

 otherwise be profitably used, markets can be better supplied from local 

 supplies if the potatoes are sold gradually, according to market require- 

 ments, i 



The change in price of the late crop is indicated by jobber prices at 

 Boston averaged for the 18 years 1929 to 1947-48^ as shown in Fig. 1. 



Prices tend to increase up to January, then level off. 



A sample survey of growers in New Hampshire showed that 26 out of 

 49 had storage capacity in excess of their 1949 crop. Most growers of be- 

 low 1100 bushels had adequate storage facilities; of 19 with crops between 

 1400 and 7500 bushels, 9 only had sufficient storage capacity. There was 

 no measure of the quality of the storage. 



To retain local markets for local growers, holding supplies either on 

 the farm or in local storage for sale during the year will more nearly meet 

 trade and consumer requirements, provided quality is maintained.^ The 

 establishment of contracts or trade connections will reduce the risk of 

 storage and it is the responsibility of individual growers or groups of grow- 

 ers to establish these relationships. Interviews with retailers and whole- 

 salers revealed that one of the major factors influencing their decisions as 

 to where to buy was the regularity of supplies through the year. Retailers 

 wanted their weekly supply delivered regularly, irrespective of the source 

 and, in many cases, shifted this responsibility to the wholesaler. The whole- 

 saler, in turn, was influenced by the regularity with which he could take de- 

 liveries and the highly organized Maine producers offered this service. 



^For methods of farm storage, see Potato Storage (U. S. Department of Agriculture Farmers Bulletin 

 1896. 



^Maine Potatoes (U. S. Department of Agriculture and Maine Division of Markets.) 



^The predominate rate of turnover among retailers is once or twice a week. Few retailers have 

 storage facilities or show any preference for adopting the storage function. 



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