COSTS OF PRODUCTION AND METHODS OF MARKETING 253 



MARKETING DAIRY PRODUCTS 



219. Ways of Marketing. The milk supply in many small 

 towns and cities is retailed by dairymen who produce part 

 or ill of the milk that they sell. There are some oppor- 

 tunities for retailing milk in regions where dairying is not a 

 general industry. Such regions are likely to have beef or 

 du; 1-purpose cattle, and the farmers are not likely to know 

 hov to care for a dairy animal. One who has good cows and 

 wh- > knows how to care for them often has a good opportu- 

 nity in such a town. Every town that is near to farm land 

 off( rs an opportunity for some retail dairyman. Some- 

 times there are too many in the business so that the business 

 wil) not pay for the time spent, but retailing frequently offers 

 a g )od chance for an energetic man. 



Many farmers make butter to retail in a near-by town or 

 to l)e shipped by parcel post. The prices received are some- 

 times enough to make this a good method of selling. 



The great majority of dairymen have to sell on a general 

 market at prices fixed by the purchaser. Sometimes the 

 conditions are such that the selling part of the business calls 

 for little thought, but often there are some points to study. 

 Cooperation in hauling milk is often a great saving of 

 time. 



If the price of milk varies with the fat content, the farmer 

 should be able to estimate which is the best kind of milk to 

 produce. If he has more than one market, he should be able 

 to make similar estimates. In regions where market milk 

 sells for so much that one cannot afford to sell the product in 

 any other way, one often sees farmers who persist in selling 

 butter-fat or butter long after this has ceased to be the best 

 practice. 



