dealers indicated no second and third floor deliveries now, or that they 

 used portable elevators or customers had installed them, and that many 

 customers made alternative arrangements when driveway conditions were 

 bad. 



Some of the improvements suggested by dealers, field men, or through 

 printed material were: eliminate clogging driveways and walkways, improve 

 openings and stairways, install ramps and unloading platforms, minimize 

 second and third floor unloadings, balance requirements per floor, rearrange 

 grain rooms, prevent mice and rat damage, eliminate opening bags by de- 

 livery truck driver, install elevators or other auxiliary equipment, and con- 

 vert to bulk feed. 



Some dealers felt that bulk delivery brought the greatest improvement 

 in making grain deliveries at the farm. Of the dealers indicating improve- 

 ments through bulk, one estimated this applied to 35 percent of his cus- 

 tomers. Others thought improvements had come about mainly through farm 

 expansion and the incorporation of improved feed handling methods in 

 the new buildings erected. One said "most" producers buying from him 

 had made improvements in recent years. Two estimated the rate of improve- 

 ment for all reasons at 5 percent; two at 10 percent; one at 20 percent; 

 and one at 25 percent. 



The general consensus was that the feed dealer was limited in his 

 power to effectuate improvements in farm receiving and handling facilities, 

 primarily because competition forced him to provide the services demanded 

 by producers. Many larger producers are in an enviable position in this 

 respect; a few take definite advantage of the situation. In some areas, and 

 on some routes, the loss of a large account might mean a reduction in the 

 dealer's business of one-fourth or one-fifth. Under such conditions, such 

 a customer would be in a strong bargaining position. Many producers 

 seemed willing to consider suggestions, and some to put them into effect, 

 if cost outlays were not excessive and/or they could realize net savings 

 thereby. 



6. Conclusions 



ALTHOUGH it was not the principal objective of this study on marketing 

 grain-feeds, it was necessary to determine the institutional framework 

 of the feed milling and distributing industry in order to find those areas 

 where the system could be made more efficient. 



With the resources devoted to this study, the area of retail distribution 

 was selected for primary emphasis. The second bulletin in the series deals 

 with that subject. Because of the relationship between achievement of de- 

 livery route efficiency and farm facilities for receiving and storing grains, 

 and since the study of delivery routes made possible many farm contacts, 

 the study was extended to the farm. The third bulletin of the series deals 

 with prospects for improving the efficiency of the grain feeding operation 

 on poultry and dairy farms. 



The importance of the milling-in-transit privileges of railroad tariffs 

 in determining feed prices at retail stores is considerable. Against the possi- 

 bilities it offers for equalizing country prices must be balanced the eco- 

 nomies of distributing locally from a store of efficient proportions. 



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