GROWERS NATIONAL MARKETING AGENCY. 23 



ing. An exceedingly favorable year will increase the expected 

 yield 25 per cent. On the other hand, floods, droughts, disease, or 

 insect pests may reduce the expected returns to as great an extent. 



Furthermore, in connection with the possibility of controlling the 

 supply, it should be remembered that farm products for the most 

 part, because of their perishable nature, must be '^ cleaned up" each 

 year. It is not easy to carry them over from season to season in 

 an effort to restrict the supply going on the market during any one 

 season. It is sometimes suggested that growers may leave their 

 products unharvested in order to restrict supply and at the same 

 time reap a higher price for the reduced supply than would have 

 been received for the whole. This suggestion might appeal to the 

 grower were it not for the fact that he has expended much money, 

 time, and effort in bringing his product to the harvest period, and 

 the loss of this expenditure for one year would in most cases burden 

 the next year's crop with a loss not likely to be repaid. In fact, he 

 has no assurance that next year's crop can carry its own burdens. 

 There are times when crops are not harvested, but such a condition 

 is due, not to the desire of the grower to restrict production, but to 

 the fact that the market price will not pay harvesting and marketing 

 costs. 



It should be remembered that monopoly among farmers requires 

 the united action of a large number of individuals, which makes 

 secrecy impossible, and hence exposes any artificial price control 

 to the law and to the public. The human element presents a serious 

 obstacle in any attempt to enforce the sufficient unity of action 

 necessary to create monopoly power among a large number of indi- 

 viduals scattered over wide areas. 



So much for the power of farmers controllihg the price of agri- 

 cultural products in general. Are the cranberry growers' organiza- 

 tions an exception to the above principles ? 



Since the organized growers control approximately 65 per cent of 

 the cranberry supply, it might be concluded on first thought that 

 they are in position to control arbitrarily the price of their product. 

 A brief analysis, however, will show that artificial price control is 

 nearly impossible. It must be accepted as a fact that the forces 

 which influence supply and demand are the forces which influence 

 price. The cranberry growers, therefore, in order to control the 

 price must exercise a direct influence over the forces which regulate 

 the production of the berries, as well as control the forces which 

 tend to govern the buying tendencies of the consumer. 



First, let us examine the supply side of the equation. In general, 

 the size of the cranberry crop depends upon the number of acres in 

 bearing and the yield per acre. The cooperative associations do not 

 attempt to influence the number of acres devoted to cranberry 



