72 COOPERATIVE MARKETING 



California changes hands with amazing frequency in com- 

 parison with the rest of the country, where a farm often 

 stays in the same family for generations. While figures 

 are not obtainable, fairly intimate knowledge supports the 

 assertion that the average length of tenure for citrus groves 

 does not exceed eight years. Therefore it would be un- 

 reasonable and unnecessary to make the purchaser of a 

 grove go through the formality of joining the association 

 and having new certificates of membership issued for groves 

 that are already in the association. So the plan is to have 

 certificates of membership apply to specified groves instead 

 of to specified individuals, and the certificates are trans- 

 ferred to the new owner by substituting his name for that 

 of the former owner. 



This plan also means that when a man sells his orchard 

 he loses his interest and rights in the association auto- 

 matically, and he consequently has no motive for not trans- 

 ferring his certificates to the new owner. Instead, 

 immediate membership in a good association is an added 

 inducement held out to prospective buyers. In addition, 

 the plan prevents the sale of certificates of membership 

 without the sale of the grove for which they are issued. 

 The plan is, then, both convenient and just, it does not 

 impede bona fide sales, yet it adequately protects the integ- 

 rity of the association's membership. 



Harmony within an association is not always maintained. 

 Very substantial differences of opinion are constantly aris- 

 ing over policies and over the actual operation of the busi- 

 ness. After the majority has determined upon a certain 

 line of action, it is not expedient that it be nullified by one 

 or two recalcitrant members. Suppose, for example, that 

 an association adopts a rigid picking requirement in order 

 to maintain its good name for sound fruit on the market. 

 The slovenliness of one member must not be allowed to 



