Page Eighteen 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



June, 1931 



PRODUCE MARKETING 



{Continued from Page i6X- 



'h. 



N 



Chicago; Tom Canfield, Swift & Co., 

 Chicago, and Dr. N. W. Hepburn, Pe- 

 oria Creamery, for the processors; and 

 Earl Smith, president, Geo. Metzger, 

 secretary, IlHnois' Agricultural Associa- 

 tion, and Sam Elkins, president Illinois 



• Produce Marketing Association, for the 

 producers. \ , ■'■■■■.■ -:■ ;":■■.:•'■'• 



The duties of the Administration 

 Cbmmittee are: 



(a) > General \upervision of all mat- 

 „ t^rs requiring joint supervision. 



(b) Arbitration of controversies that 

 may arise between the parties or be- 

 tween processors signing similar agree- 

 ments. V 



(c) To afloCate and reallocate cream 

 delivered by association to processor. 



(d) To adjust all matters of differ- 

 ences with reference to grading, weights 

 and tests. /-',■■■•;,; ..i^'.'-v <- '":./. ':''V-;:, ■• 



(e) To encourage the production of 

 a better product. 



This method of co-operative market- 

 ing has incorporated into the plan some 

 entirely new features. It is more or less 

 ; n experiment in the field of co-oper- 

 itive effort. 



Profit-Sharing Plan \ 



The "division-of-profit" plan with 

 private interests is rarely <;ver seen in 

 the co-operative field. Here is an at- 

 tempt not only for producers to co- 

 opierate but one to bring about co-oper- 

 ation between producers and private in- 

 terests. "With such wide deviation from 

 the usual method of co-operative effort, 

 it is expected that serious problems 

 might arise. 



The Administration Committee never- 

 theless has been quite successful in ad- 

 ministering this plan. There has been 

 no disagreement in the matter of allo- 

 cation of butterfat, neither has there 

 been difficulty in settling other prob- 

 lems coming before the Administration 

 Committee with the exception of one 

 instance. 



A Problem Unsolved 



The problem that has not yet been 

 solved is that of protecting the pools' 

 operating margin at points where inde- 

 pendent buyers not co-operating in this 

 plan are responsible for unduly high 

 prices. The best that has been accom- 



• plished at these points is for the proces- 

 sor to protect the pool to the extent of 

 one-half of its operating cost. Such an 

 adjustment cannot be accepted as satis- 

 factory over a long period. It will be 

 necessary for the Administration Com- 

 mittee to work out a satisfactory policy 

 covering this situation. 



/' Numerous cases have been reported 



-^ /by creameries stating that they are not 



{■^getting the full amount of butterfat 



;>^ paid for. Investigations have been made 



in every case and findings indicate that 



60 Marshall-Putnam 



Livestock Men at Peoria, 



li. p. Brissenden 



L. F. Brissenden, I. A. A, district or- 

 ganization manager in the southeastern 

 Illinois territory, recently returned 

 from a trip to British Columbia, where 

 he and Mrs. Brissenden visited their son 

 and daughter-in-law. 



"Here is one fish story that's true," 

 he writes. "The salmon I caught shown 

 in the picture was 37 inches long and 

 weighed 19 pounds. I got a real thrill 

 out of landing this salmon.*- :'•.■. 



"I learned many things during the 

 trip about the wheat pool in Canada, 

 and co-operative poultry and egg mar- 

 keting up and down the Pacific Coast." 



in some cases the creamery is at fault 

 and in other cases the trouble is at the 

 station. ■-;■.■■:. v-' '^'' •;:■■■ •■." 



The first division of profit period ex- 

 tended from June 1, 1930, to March 

 31, 1931. During that period the total 

 amount of pooled butterfat amounted 

 to approximately 1,684,000 pounds on 

 which the total amount of money paid 

 in by the creameries amounted to $1,- 

 645.74, which is equivalent to prac- 

 tically .Ic per pound. The division of 

 profits for this period is almost negligi- 

 ble. It is as much as could reasonably 

 be expected perhaps when market con- 

 ditions during the period are taken into 

 consideration. A study of the market 

 from June 1, 1930, to March 31, 1931, 

 indicates that during the entire period 

 there has been a consistent decline in the 

 market. 



Decline Hurts All 



This decline naturally resulted in 

 low profits or losses, not only from 

 the standpoint of the processors but also 

 from the standpoint of the margin 

 made by the co-operative association. 

 Of the 24 creameries purchasing pooled 

 cream during this period only eight were 

 able to show a margin above operating 

 cost. This small division of profit is 

 disappointirjg to the producers. Yet this 

 method of marketing deserves further 

 trial in a period more favorable for its 

 success. 



The end of the present contract pe- 

 riod expires with the calendar year 

 1931. At its close improvement un- 



Producers' Representatives Demon- 

 strate Market Grades and 

 i • Grading 



SIXTY livestock farmers led by Guy 

 French, director of the Peoria Pro- 

 ducers and chairman of the Marshall- 

 Putnam Farm Bureau Livestock Mar- 

 keting Committee, and R. J. Laible, 

 Farm Adviser, visited the Peoria Pro- 

 ducers on May 20. They were met by 

 Eddie Sitton, hog salesman and Ray E. 

 Miller of the Illinois Agricultural Asso- 

 ciation, and conducted through the 

 yards. ":;■-■""•■■ .:^v -,■:'-■'•';;". '-'■ :■;,' •'■■■■.. ' .m "-''■■ - 

 Methods of unloading, receiving, 

 weighing, yarding and feeding were ex- 

 plained. Following the trip through the 

 yards the delegation was assembled in a 

 large pen where different grades of hogs 

 had been selected. Mr. Sitton discussed 

 each grade of hogs, why it was graded 

 in that manner, its value and what the 

 outlet for that class of stuff was. The 

 calf grading demonstration was particu- 

 larly interesting. Many of the visiting 

 growers expressed surprise at informa- 

 tion which came out in the demonstra- 

 tion. A discussion of the different 

 grades of butcher cattle concluded this 

 part of the program. 



Luncheon at Hotel ^ 



Following luncheon at the Hotel 

 Jefferson, George Wilson, president of 

 the Peoria Producers, was presented by 

 Mr. French. W. R. Hembrough, mana- 

 ger of the Peoria Producers discussed 

 informally the operation of the co- 

 operative, the Stocker and Feeder Com- 

 pany, and later answered questions. 

 Manager D. L. Swanson of the Chicago 

 Producers was also a guest and spoke 

 briefly of the operation of the Chicago 

 Producers and its relation to the Peoria 

 Producers. Ray Miller and Sid Cherrill 

 of the Livestock Marketing Department 

 of the I. A. A. discussed the activities 

 of the Livestock Marketing Department. 



doubtcdly will be brought about to 

 eliminate some of the present difficul- 

 ties. An agreement should be reached 

 to protect co-operatives in towns where 

 independent operators are buying but- 

 terfat. During the past year the direct 

 shipper price for butterfat has been 

 more favorable than station price. This 

 condition should be corrected by giving 

 pools some consideration. Finally, if 

 the dairy industry of Illinois is to de- 

 velop to the fullest extent, it will be 

 necessary to develop and enforce a grad- 

 ing plan. With other states forging 

 ahead in the production of high quality 

 butter, it is necessary for our state to 

 fall in line or be satisfied to take a lower 

 price for what we produce. : \^-'. 





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