228 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



J"Iy 



How to Get 2 Cents More for 

 Honey 



By Chilton I iano 



IF honey producers could get 2 

 cents per pound more for their 

 honey than at present, and still 

 not have the consumer price ad- 

 vanced—in other words, if they could 

 lower the cost of distribution that 

 much— they would jump at the 

 chance. 



Well— they can do this! 



The Texas honey producers did it, 

 and it only took them six weeks. 

 How they did it is no mystery.^ It 

 was simply (to quote Kipling) "the 

 everlastin' teamwork of every bloom- 

 in' soul." 



Any group of honey producers m 

 a fairly small territory can do the 

 same thing. 



The writer told the story of the 

 Texas Honey Producers' first year of 

 co-operative marketing in the May 

 and June issues of the American Bee 

 Journal. Now it is desired to "point 

 the lesson" from their experience- 

 to analyze what they did— get at the 

 gist of it— grasp its principle— as an 

 aid to other beekeepers in doing like- 

 wise. 



Too often the mistake is made of 

 reading such stories and then forget- 

 ting them — in one ear and out the 

 other. This would be a great mis- 

 take, in the present case. It is prob- 

 able' that nothing so important and 

 significant to the subject of honey- 

 selling generally has happened in a 

 long time. 



Suppose we follow the "Before and 

 After" method of summarizing what 

 was done. The situation in Texas 

 before co-operation will be seen to 

 be exactly like the situation prevail- 

 ing today in a score of honey-produc- 

 ing communities. The contrast with 

 conditions after co-operation was 

 adopted, will be found striking and 

 will make it clear just how distribut- 

 ing methods were improved and their 

 cost lessened. 



Beekeepers who want to secure 

 petter prices and realize that bet- 

 ter prices must be "earned" — that 

 they won't just come for the wishing 

 — are advised to thoroughly grasp the 

 lesson of this article, then to study 

 the two articles in May and June 

 American Bee Journal, and, finally. 

 to interest the beekeepers of their 

 communities in the new and better 

 method of selling honey. 



Remember, that it only took the 

 Texas producers six weeks to perma- 

 nently advance honey prices 2 cents. 

 That is inducement enough for any 

 man. But here is another induce- 

 ment: The new plan gave new life 

 and new impetus to the Texas honey 

 industry. Texas honey is now in de- 

 mand, is paying everybody connected 

 with it, its production is worth while. 

 the producers have every reason to 

 increase production to the utmost, 

 Thi» is helping to win the war! Any- 

 thing that promotes production of a 



sugar substitute is helping to win the 



war. 



Before Co-operation 



ire co-operation in Texas the 



situation was just like it is in any 

 community where each farmer is his 

 own salesman. Some of the produc- 

 ers were selling to speculators, some 

 to jobber' buyers, some direct to the 

 wholesalers or retailers in nearby 

 cities; some, perhaps, unsatisfied 

 with prices procurable in these ways, 

 were trying to sell direct to consum- 

 ers of their community. There was 

 no general understanding regarding 

 what was a fair price for honey. 

 Each producer got the best price he 

 could. If he happened to feel blue 

 or discouraged, or the buyer could 

 make him feel so, he might sell at no 

 profit whatever. Some even sold be- 

 low cost without knowing it, having 

 no correct idea of what it costs to 

 produce honey. 



It is thus seen that producers were 

 inevitably underbidding each other 

 in the markets. Such a condition 

 benefits no one. When prices to the 

 producer are unsatisfactory he has 

 no incentive to put up a quality prod- 

 uct, to pack it properly, or to take 

 care of it during distribution. His 

 business, being inadequately financed, 

 is shabbily conducted. This brings 

 honey on the market in an unattrac- 

 tive condition. It doesn't appeal to 

 the trade or to the consumer. It 

 can't compete in "looks" with the 

 handsome products of big packers 

 now featured in every grocery store. 

 Farmers don't realize how many 

 things sell because of their sanitary, 

 clean-cut, appetizing "look." 



Under these conditions honey 

 didn't appeal to producers, trade or 

 consumers. It isn't surprising that it 

 was a drug on the market in July, 

 1916, selling at 5 cents for extracted 

 and 7 cents for comb. These prices 

 were born of ignorance and ruinous 

 competition. 



Again, grocers didn't want to han- 

 dle it, because it was too much of a 

 hit and miss proposition. You can't 

 build up a regular consumer demand 

 for a grocery product that sometimes 

 you can get and sometimes you can't, 

 and that varies in pack, color, price 

 and flavor, every time you buy it. 

 Grocers have been educated by the 

 big manufacturers to where they 

 like businesslike methods and stand- 

 ard products attractively packed. 



After Co-operation 



Nobody was satisfied. Then the 

 wholesalers and retailers heard that 

 the producers had waked up and 

 were going to get together and mend 

 matters. The trade don't usually wel- 

 come the news that producers want 

 better prices, but this time was an 

 exception to the rule. Honey was "N. 

 G." as it was. It wasn't making 

 money for anybody. The trade must 

 have realized that the only way to 

 get a presentable product was to give 

 the producers fair prices. 



News of the meetings of the bee- 

 keepers and their analysis got 

 around. They believed they must 

 have at least 2 cents a pound more 

 for honey in order to deliver a good 

 product. They agreed that such an 

 advance was only fair — was only a 

 "living wage." Well — the trade didn't 

 "kick." Within six weeks after the 

 producers had determined to organ- 



ize, before they could have done very 

 much except "talk" and "plan" — 

 Texas honey was bringing the higher 

 price. It just shows the salutary psy- 

 chological effect on an industry 

 when "teamwork" becomes the mot- 

 to. 



And the minute it became appar- 

 ent that honey need no longer be a 

 "beggar" in the markets, but was 

 "worthy of its hire," there began to 

 be an incentive to throw away its old 

 clothes and "dress up." The Associa- 

 tion set out at once to remedy all 

 the defects in the old system of mar- 

 keting honey. 



One defect — a big one — had been 

 the absence of standards. Honey 

 grading rules were adopted that 

 should be rigidly followed by all 

 members of the Association. Today 

 the grocer can no longer complain 

 that he is unable to get the kind of 

 honey his customers have been buy- 

 ing from him in the past and prefer. 

 He orders by grade name, and if the 

 honey doesn't meet the grade de- 

 scription, the Producers' Association 

 makes good and penalizes the mem- 

 ber who packed it. 



Another defect had been absence 

 of a guarantee by the producer to 

 the consumer. Grocery products like 

 Shredded Wheat, Heinz's Beans, 

 Welch's Grape Juice, bear the mak- 

 er's name and label, and this serves 

 as a guarantee of quality. Somebody 

 stands back of the product and says, 

 "I packed this; if it isn't O. K., I'm 

 ready to make it good." The Asso- 

 ciation adopted a brand and label, 

 which is its guarantee to the cus- 

 tomer that honey so branded is first- 

 class and can be depended on. 



Another defect had been too much 

 handling of the product between pro- 

 ducer and consumer. And this is 

 highly important. In the case of 

 both extracted and comb honey, re- 

 handling costs money — and in the 

 case of comb honey it also causes un- 

 necessary leakage and breakage. The 

 Association plan doesn't allow the 

 jobber to handle the honey at all. 

 The jobber does all of the other usual 

 things. He gets the retailer's order, 

 extends him credit if desired, and 

 collects for the shipment. But he 

 doesn't deliver the honey. It is 

 shipped direct to the retailer by the 

 producer, who acts under instruc- 

 tions from the Association's general 

 manager, Mr. E. G. LeStourgeon. 

 This one factor of direct shipments, 

 saving leakage, breakage, rehandling 

 charges, bookkeeping and storage, is 

 no doubt alone saving more than the 

 2 cents per pound which was accord- 

 ed the producer after six weeks un- 

 der the new plan. 



This article is intended merely to 

 draw the broad, emphatic lesson from 

 the experience of the new Texas or- 

 ganization — not to tell the whole 

 story. As a matter of fact, the 2- 

 cent advance was only the beginning 

 of the savings and benefits secure. I 

 by this Association, as may be 

 learned by referring to the previous 

 articles. 



What the Texans did can be done 

 by any beekeepers. One thing 

 should be noted, however, Texas has 



