Dec. 1939J Marketing of Farm Woodland Products 23 



there is the problem of whether or not attention should be focused upon 

 stumpage prices or upon prices which farmers receive wherever they 

 dispose of the logs. 



If a farmer chooses to raise corn and feed it to his cattle rather than 

 sell the corn as grain, then the income he receives when he sells the cat- 

 tle is the income in which we are interested. Similarly, when dealing 

 with woodland products, if the farmer chooses to cut his own timber and 

 deliver it in his own truck to the mill, then the income he receives is 

 based upon the mill price less the out-of-pocket costs of taking it out of 

 the woods. Consequently, we take the situation as it now is with some 

 farmers selling their wood on the stump, others getting it out of the 

 woods and selling it at the side of the road, and still others taking it as 

 far as the mill. If we add the income from all of these different methods 

 of sale, we can get a measure of the total farm income from wood in that 

 area. In 1929 it approximated $30,000.1 



Our problem is to increase this sum of money. With existing market 

 outlets an increase in income could be obtained by more efficient disposal 

 of particular species, such a white ash, which comprise a small part of 

 any stand. At present such species are seldom separated from those of 

 lesser value and consequently bring little or no premium over the bulk of 

 the logs sold. By actual assembling, or by selling through a central 

 agency without physical concentration, small quantities now in the hands 

 of individuals could be made to yield returns more commensurate with 

 their actual worth. 



Income might also be increased if producers would carry on more of 

 the logging and trucking operations themselves. Where ec|uipment and 

 man-power are available, it is frequently possible to use it at a time of 

 the year when other farm work is light. Still another source of possible 

 increased income would be from an improvement in bargaining power 

 which might put the individual producer and the wood-using plant more 

 nearly in a position of equality. In the following discussion of the pos- 

 sibility of forming a cooperative, this matter of bargaining advantage 

 will be treated. 



Another opportunity for increasing income from farm woodland would 

 be to make the transportation of these products from the farm to the 

 plant more efficient. This would include the elimination of much of the 

 cross shipping now being done. Whether transportation rates could be 

 lower is a question. At the present time it appears that many of the 

 operators transporting forest products in this section are charging such 

 low rates that they are operating at a loss. 



If it is assumed that the most efficient market outlets, considering both 

 quality and quantity as well as location and transportation, are estab- 

 lished in the area, what saving could be made? An accurate answer to 

 this question cannot be given because of the difficulty of securing ade- 

 quate data regarding such adjustment. One factor of considerable im- 

 portance is that ^\dth efficient processing much of the raw material now 

 being improperly processed in inefficient mills might be placed in a higher 

 grade and return a higher price. 



It also seems probable that with a smaller number of mills of a more 

 efficient character, costs of operating would be spread over a larger 



^Adapted from 1930 Agricultural Census estimate of value of forest products sold. 



