THE TRANSPORTATION OF NEW HAMPSHIRE 



MILK 



II. Reorganization of Truck Routes i 



by Alan MacLeod 

 T^ HIS is the second of two studies on the transportation of milk from 

 farms to the markets where it is consumed. The preceding study ^ 

 laid particular emphasis upon the charges levied upon the milk. These 

 charges were analyzed in considerable detail in an attempt to determine 

 not only their amount but the bases upon which they were set. 



The present study pays attention to what might l)e termed the physical 

 process of assembling milk from farms to plants, as contrasted with the 

 preceding study which had to do with charges levied on this milk. This 

 attention to the process of milk hauling is not for the purpose of obtain- 

 ing knowledge for its own sake, but is expected to be of value in re- 

 organizing the marketing structure. 



Excessive charges may come about in two ways : first, by a failure to 

 keep charges in proper relationship to the cost of the services rendered, 

 and second, by a failure to maintain the physical process of assembly in 

 a condition of maximum efficiency. 



The Problem 



How can waste motion be eliminated ? 



This question, which states the problem in summary fashion, is not 

 academic to the farmer. Where unnecessary duplication of equipment 

 and effort exist in the transportation of New Hampshire milk, someone 

 must pay for this waste motion. 



Because trucking charges are customarily deducted directly from the 

 farmer's check, the greater these charges the smaller his check. Ex- 

 pressed in another way, any decrease in charges should reflect back to 

 producers in increased returns.^ 



In this study an attempt is made to discover whether or not equip- 

 ment and personnel are being used efficiently, or whether (and, if so, 

 to what extent) duplication, overcapacity, and useless effort form a part 

 of the transportation picture in New Hampshire. With this informa- 

 tion as a base, various changes in truck routes and equipment whereby 

 the efficiency of collection can be increased, will be made. Finally, the 

 savings possible through reorganization will be estimated and methods by 

 which they might be brought about will be presented. 



The preceding study* had to do entirely with trucking charges. It 

 outlined the problem as follows: "High costs of distribution adversely 

 affect returns to fluid milk producers. Many of the costs of milk col- 



^ This is a New Hampshire publication in the New England-wide milk marketing study, 

 which is sponsored by the New England Research Council. Acknowledgment is made to Mary L. 

 Geraghty and Byron Peterson for assistance with tabulations and maps, and to truck operators, 

 plant officials, and farmers who supplied information for this study. 



- MacLeod, Alan and Geraghty, Mary L. : The Transportation of New Hampshire Milk ; 

 I Analysis of Trucking Charges ; New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 

 307, 1938. 



3 Perhaps a qualification is needed — that depending upon the slopes of supply and demand 

 curves, after time for adjustment is allowed — producers would share with consumers a portion 

 of the gain through more efficient assembly. 



* MacLeod, et al., opus cit. 



