246 Cooperation in Agriculture 



brands, because the fruit in each section, on account of 

 soil and other local differences, has an individuality of its 

 own, and every brand sells on its own merits. 



There are in addition to the California Fruit-growers' 

 Exchange about forty independent cooperative associa- 

 tions and individual grower-shippers, which, with the 

 exchange, handle eighty-five per pent of the citrus-fruit 

 crop. The independent cooperative associations conduct 

 their operations along the same general lines as outlined 

 above ; except that they market through brokers in the 

 market, all of the business transactions being handled 

 direct or by an agent who represents them in all of their 

 business transactions. In addition to these associations 

 and independent grower-shippers, a small proportion of 

 the fruit is handled by speculative buyers or is shipped 

 through agents to Eastern firms on consignment. 



Fixing a Price 



There is a tendency in farmers' cooperative associations 

 to fix the price at which the entire crop shall be sold, or 

 the price for a period in advance, or for the different grades 

 of produce. They are induced sometimes to regulate the 

 output, divide the territory, and to follow other practices 

 that restrict competition and regulate prices. These prac- 

 tices or any others that tend to regulate the price or to 

 restrain or regulate trade conditions are likely to bring 

 an association in conflict with the state and federal stat- 

 utes that have been enacted to prevent combinations of 

 any kind that act unreasonably in the regulation of prices 

 or in restraint of trade. Such practices when followed 

 by manufacturers have been declared illegal by the courts. 



