424 FARM MANAGEMENT 



farmer to hold his products. The two most important 

 factors are how much the money is needed and how the 

 work of marketing fits in with the other farm work. The 

 majority of farmers can make better use of the money 

 in some other way. Sometimes it pays to hold products 

 to be marketed in seasons when there is less farm work. 

 Very frequently the condition of the roads overshadows 

 all other considerations. The question of storage on a 

 farm that has good storage room that would otherwise be 

 idle is very different from the problem on a farm where 

 such a building must be put up. 



Often there is a rush of marketing grain as soon as a 

 product will do to sell, and sometimes before it is ready. 

 Such grain is difficult to handle without spoiling. It 

 sometimes congests the elevators so that there is an ab- 

 normally low price. When any such condition arises, it 

 is, of course, desirable to hold the product. 



Usually the need for money, the pressure of farm work, 

 and the condition of the roads determine the best time to 

 sell. 



WAYS OF SELLING PRODUCTS 



259. Retailing vs. wholesaling. There is now very 

 much discussion about sending products direct to the 

 consumer. The general farm products, as cotton, wheat, 

 corn, beef, wool, and pork, cannot often be so marketed. 

 The discussion applies mostly to vegetables, eggs, and 

 other perishable products that are ready for food when 

 they leave the farm. Around every town and city there 

 are farmers who do more or less retailing of products. 

 Sometimes the business is large and profitable, as on some 

 farms that retail milk. But in the great majority of 

 cases, the retailing is done by farmers with small farms 



