GROWEES' NATIONAL MAEKETT]S^Cx AGENCY. 17 



As it was, however, an average price of $8.89 a barrel was obtained, 

 resulting in an estimated gain of over .$1,000,000 to the growers. 



Conditions in 1919 were worse than ever before. There was a 

 very large crop (556,000 barrels), the third largest in the history of 

 the industry. The sugar situation instead of improving was be- 

 coming worse. Transportation facilities were demoralized and 

 weather conditions were adverse. The opening price for cranberries 

 was placed at $8.50 a barrel. In the last week of September severe 

 sugar restrictions were placed on the country and the price of sugar 

 rose to 25 and 30 cents a pound retail. The price of cranberries 

 fell to $7.50 by the middle of October. Approximately $123,580 

 was spent in advertising that year. Toward the last of October 

 results began to be felt, and by the middle of November the price 

 again reached $8.50. 



For the year 1920 there was an allotment of approximately 

 $108,000 for advertising purposes. Of this amount, $77,937 was 

 expended on advertising, which was an amount equal to 27^ cents 

 a barrel on the total sales of the season. Nearly $31,000 of the 

 advertising assessment was returned to the growers, because the 

 demand was sufficient to clean up the supply without further ad- 

 vertising expenditure. 



Up to and including the season of 1920-21 a total of $293,434 

 was spent for advertising purposes. This amount is equal to an 

 average of 20 cents a barrel on all cranberries shipped cooperatively 

 from 1916 to 1921. 



It will be noticed from the data contained in Figure 4 that more 

 money was received for a small crop in 1917 than was received for 

 a crop over twice as large in 1914. Since 1917 the amount of 

 money received has been more nearly in proportion to production. 

 That is, a large crop has not necessarily meant small total receipts. 



It might be inferred that the increased receipts from cranberry 

 sales were due to the general wave of rising prices. But this can 

 hardly be the case, for the price and scarcity of sugar had a tendency 

 to depress cranberry prices. This tendency was combated by the 

 stimulation of consumption through advertising. Furthermore, if 

 the increase were due in any large measure to the forces that caused 

 prices to rise during the war, it would naturally follow that cran- 

 berries would fall in price during 1920-21 in the face of an average 

 crop and in a period of falling prices, but this was not the case. 



The bad years test to the fullest extent the advantages of coopera- 

 tion. In all probability had it not been for advertising and the 

 ability of the exchange to distribute shipments in a way to establish 

 and maintain a reasonably stable market, many carloads would not 

 have been sold at all in 1919, and the rest would have been sold 

 1936°— 22— Bull. 1109 3 



