i86 THE MARKETING OF WHOLE MILK 



with conditions and prices, and because they felt that 

 dealers were exacting too wide a margin. 



TABLE XXXVI 



Number of Drivers Required to Deliver Milk Before and After Formation of the 

 Cooperative Companies 



Of twenty companies nine provide for a patronage 

 dividend of some sort and eleven do not. Many of the 

 companies depend to some extent on others than members 

 to supply them with a part of their milk. 



Some of these attempts on the part of farmers to dis- 

 tribute their own milk cooperatively have proved mark- 

 edly successful. Others have resulted in partial or total 

 failure, due to inadequate financing or lack of business 

 skill and foresight. Several have had difficulties arising 

 out of bad management and one has gone into bankruptcy 

 within the past year- because of dishonesty and misman- 

 agement. One company, after operating profitably for 

 about ten years, failed because of inadequate accounting 

 and lack of intelligent supervision by the board of direc- 

 tors. 4 



It is doubtless too early to characterize the movement 

 either as a success or a failure. Cooperative grain market- 

 ing is now generally considered successful, yet its begin- 



1 Marketing Dairy Products, Cir. No. I, U. S. Bu. of Markets, Feb., 1920. 



2 Weekly News Letter, June 4, 1919, p. 16. 



3 Ohio Farmer, March 8, 1919, p. 382. 



4 Marketing Dairy Products, Cir. I, U. S. Bu. of Markets, Feb., 1920. 



