DANISH CO-OPEEATIVE EGG EXPORT SOCIETY 7;] 



to come from the shippers. A beginning was made by forming 

 local societies, the members of which bound themselves to 

 dehver their eggs weekly and never to send any stale eggs. 

 Such societies gradually obtained somewhat higher prices 

 during the latter half of the year. .Some of the shippers also 

 formed similar local societies amongst their egg-supphers. 

 This was a step in the right direction, but it had only a local 

 application, and did not influence the trade and export of eggs 

 as a whole. In 1894 an attempt was made by the Agricultural 

 Society of Horsens to get the egg producers all over Jutland 

 to combine to form one large society for the improvement of 

 the egg trade. The society was formed, but failed to secure 

 the necessary support. The same result followed similar 

 attempts at other places. But although these attempts did 

 not succeed, they helped to draw the attention of many people 

 to the need of reform, and they all pointed in the right direction. 



Among those who interested themselves in the improve- 

 ment of the egg trade were Severin Jorgensen, mentioned in a 

 previous chapter for his inestimable services to the Co-operative 

 Distributive Societies and their joint wholesale trading, and two 

 village schoolmasters, Frederik MoUer and P. Rasmussen, who 

 were teaching peasant children in elementary State schools in 

 the country near Vejle. These men, with the experience 

 acquired from other agricultural co-operative work in mind, 

 were the first to perceive that in order to get egg-producers 

 interested in the egg trade and combine in a large society, it 

 was not enough to ask them to improve the quahty of eggs 

 sold to dealers. It was necessary to go the whole length, to 

 do away with the hucksters and agents who travelled the 

 country districts to collect eggs, and to form a society not only 

 for collecting, but also for trading in and exporting eggs. 

 Further, it was necessary to be able by an efficient control to 

 ensure that only fresh eggs were sent in, and in order to enforce 

 this principle it was intended to fine such members as should 

 send in stale eggs or eggs kept over. For this latter purpose 

 a system of marking eggs was proposed by which it could be 

 seen at once from which producer any egg had been dehvered. 



The Agricultural Society of Vejle Amt was approached, and 

 Fr. Moller and P. Rasmussen attended a committee meeting at 



