lo COOPERATIVE MARKETING 



market report service and then realize the full benefit from 

 this information by delegating marketing authority to some 

 man or group of men occupied wholly with the selling and 

 not the production of commodities. The selling department 

 can also turn attention to the time element as well as to 

 place distribution, and by delaying or expediting shipments 

 a rational instead of a fortuitous distribution can be ef- 

 fected. Of what value to the ordinary farmer would be 

 the knowledge that better prices could be secured by re- 

 tarding his sales? He is under compulsion to ship within 

 narrowly circumscribed time limits or allow his crops to 

 deteriorate. An organization, however, can provide an ele- 

 vator or a warehouse or a cold storage plant and make 

 itself relatively independent of the necessity of immediate 

 marketing. It would be folly for an individual to install 

 such an equipment, but a group can command the credit 

 for the physical plant, the financial stake of any individual 

 is not an oppressive item, and his share of the expense is 

 small, yet the possibility of profits from stdring his products 

 for a more favorable market is as great as though he indi- 

 vidually possessed storage facilities. 



The expression "cooperative marketing" is used in two 

 quite dissimilar significations : ( i ) It may apply to united 

 activity on the part of producers, usually manufacturers, 

 and distributors, such as retailers, for the sale of a given 

 commodity. Obviously this form of cooperative marketing 

 has nothing to do with cooperation among the producers 

 themselves. It may best be illustrated by the frequent usage 

 of manufacturers of specialties who include the names of 

 local dealers in the advertisements sent out by the factory. 

 (2) The second meaning is that with which we shall be 

 concerned. It signifies the cooperation of individual pro- 

 ducers or groups of producers for the marketing of prod- 

 ucts. Nothing is implied in regard to cooperation between 



