December, 1932 



THE I. A. A. RECORD 



Page Five 





.■:'rv;-':.^^. 



British Farmers Get 



Price-Fixing Legislation 



Parliament Passes Marketing 



Act Much More Far-Reach- 



ing Than Ours 



THE British Agricultural Market- 

 ing Act passed in July last year 

 permits the producers of any farm 

 commodity by means of a two- 

 thirds majority vote to place the 

 entire marketing of all the commod- 

 ity produced under the control of 

 their own organization. 



If the producers of a given com- 

 modity wish to set up an organiza- 

 tion they must first submit their 

 plan to the Minister of Agriculture. 

 The plan must provide for a board 

 to control marketing, must define 

 its powers and provide for the elec- 

 tion of its members by producers. 

 If the Minister approves the plan 

 and is satisfied that the persons 

 submitting it are representative of 

 the producers of .the commodity, he 

 has to submit it to Parliament 

 where, upon its approval, it becomes 

 law. 



The Act provides wide powers. A 

 commodity board under the terms 

 of the Act could own and operate 

 a meat packing plant. But before 

 the plan can be made effective it 

 must have a two-thirds majority 

 vote of producers voting on it. At 

 least half of the producers of the 

 commodity must have taken part in 

 the voting. '■'■'■•'. !1 



Three Types Boards 



;' Three types of boards are con- 



; ,\ templated under the Act, the trad- 

 ing board which would handle the 



.\-:, commodity in question, a regulating 

 ' - board which merely issues instruc- 

 tions as to how the commodity is to 

 be sold, and a third type which 

 would have both regulatory and 



7j.- trading functions. A board cannot 

 exercise any direct control over 

 production, but it may control sales 

 in such a manner as to impose a 

 penalty on producers for produc- 

 tion of excessive amounts. 



The law provides for co-operative 

 buying as well as cooperative sell- 

 ing. One difference between this 

 Act and our own marketing act in 

 the United States is that the British 

 A.ct provides for compulsory co- 

 operation of all producers when 

 two -thirds of them approve the 

 plan. 



If there is substantial opposition 

 to the plan objectors can obtain 

 redress in the courts. This must be 

 done before the Act passes Parlia- 

 ment. Once a plan is approved by 

 Parliament no court action can re- 

 peal it. In England Parliament it- 

 self is the court of last appeal. 



While the Act has been in force 

 about a year only one plan has 



; ' come into operation, that for con- 

 trolling the marketing of hops. 



NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEET- 

 ING OF ILLINOIS AGRICUL- 

 TURAL ASSOCIATION 



NOTICE is hereby given that 

 the annual meeting of the 

 members of ILLINOIS AGRI- 

 CULTURAL ASSOCIATION 

 will be convened at the Pere 

 Marquette Hotel, in Peoria, 

 Illinois, on the 26th day of 

 January, 1933, at 9:00 o'clock 

 a. m., for the following pur- 

 poses : 



For the consideration and 

 vote upon approval and ratifi- 

 cation of the reports of the 

 president, secretary and treas- 

 urer of the Association, and 

 the acts of the board of direc- 

 tors and officers in further- 

 ance of the matters therein 

 set forth, since the last annual 

 meeting of the members of the 

 Association. 



To approve, ratify and con- 

 firm the several purchases 

 heretofore made by this Asso- 

 ciation of stocks and evidences 

 of indebtedness of corpora- 

 tions whose activities will di- 

 rectly or indirectly promote 

 agriculture or the interests of 

 those engaged therein. 



To secure consent and au- 

 thorization to acquire on be- 

 half of this Association, by 

 purchase, certain stocks and 

 evidences of indebtedness of 

 corporations whose activities 

 will directly or indirectly 

 promote agriculture or the in- 

 terests of those engaged 

 therein. 



To elect eight members to 

 the board of directors for two- 

 year terms. 



To elect a president and 

 vice-president. 



To consider any proposed 

 amendments of the articles of 

 association or of the by-laws 

 of Illinois Agricultural Asso- 

 ciation as may be properly 

 submitted. 



For the transaction of such 

 other business as may properly 

 come before the meeting. 



GEO. E. METZGER, 

 Secretary. 

 Chicago, 111., Nov. 26, 1932. 



The principal objections raised 

 against the Act by certain farmers 

 is the compulsory feature, also that 

 without control of imports or a 

 tariff, the Act would be ineffective 

 in raising prices since it provides 

 no method of dealing with foreign 

 competition. 



The plan for marketing hops ap- 

 plies to a commodity of which the 

 price in England is largely depend- 

 ent on the domestic supply. A tar- 

 iff has proven ineffective and at- 

 tempts on the part of producers to 



organize for limiting supplies have 

 failed owing to the refusal of a 

 minority to co-operate. Producers 

 are to be paid for their hops in ac- 

 cordance with the principle of the 

 seasonal pool. The hops plan was 

 approved by Parliament early in 

 July this year, and the producers 

 gave it the required majority vote 

 early in August. 



The British Marketing Act re- 

 ceived more widespread support 

 among farmers in Scotland than in 

 England chiefly because Scottish 

 farmers have made more headway 

 in co-operative marketing than 

 have English farmers. In Scotland 

 plans have been developed for mar- 

 keting milk and raspberries. 



The boards appointed under these 

 plans may exercise both regulatory 

 and trading functions. They may 

 even process the commodity. Where 

 the board does not itself market the . 

 product, it will fix the price and 

 payment will be made by the pro- 

 ducer to the board and not to the 

 producer. The board after deduct- 

 mg its own expenses will distribute 

 the proceeds among the producers, 

 paying a uniform price for each 

 grade of product. 



A bounty plan subsidizing wheat 

 farmers in the British Isles was 

 enacted during the past summer by 

 which wheat growers are guaran- 

 teed a price of approximately $1.30 

 a bushel. 



This recent action by Great Brit- 

 ain to help its farmers is in line 

 with similar action taken by such 

 countries as France, Italy, Ger- 

 many, etc. 



I. A. A. Annual Meeting 

 Set For Jan. 25-26-27 



(Continued from page 4, col. 3) 



"Our Organization Department 

 has done its work and done it well," 

 said the Committee report, "but 

 there will be times when our an- 

 nual payments will come in slowly; 

 times when money among farmers 

 will be scarcer than it is today, then 

 will come the test of the real 

 strength of this Association. Is it 

 wise to risk letting a great work fail 

 just at the most important moment 

 for lack of funds to carry it 

 through? Is it just and right to ask 

 the representatives from your dis- 

 trict on the executive committee 

 who are already donating their time 

 and labor to loan their personal 

 credit to tide this Association over 

 a critical place? 



"Many organizations own real es- 

 tate and office buildings valued up 

 in the millions. They have a perma- 

 nently established credit and can 

 borrow money at any time. I hope 

 to see the day come in the near fu- 

 ture when the I. A. A. may have 

 $100,000 invested in United States 

 government bonds which could be 

 put up as collateral at a moment's 

 notice. 



(Continued on page 6 col. 3) 



r'--: .■- 



