^^•^ Illinois State Dairymen's Association. 



the interest of you producers to keep in close touch with the con- 

 sumer — determine his wants and supply them — in this way you 

 will secure his confidence and build up your business. The cam- 

 paign of education that has been in motion for the past few years 

 is going to evolve a new order of things in the milk business. 

 Old methods will be superseded by new and the producer who 

 has not a true conception of dairying will gradually be crowded 

 out of the business. The dairy business is going to be placed 

 on a scientific as well as business basis, employing educated and 

 skilled labor and keeping only profitable cows. Are you on the 

 right track? 



Value to the Dealer. 



Milk contests are of value to the dealer in assisting him to 

 determine where the good dairies are, hence making it easier for 

 him to find a supply of milk to meet the demands made upon him 

 for a good product. With a supply of good milk to handle, 

 there is less trouble with sour milk and less complaint from con- 

 sumers. 



Value to the Consumer. 



The principal value of these contests to the consumer is in 

 pointing out the defects in milk and showing him what good 

 milk really is. Clean milk certainly ought to command a pre- 

 mium over dirty milk. With the average consumer, however, 

 milk is looked upon as a necessity to be bought as cheaply as 

 possible. If he is asked to pay a higher price, he immediately 

 characterizes it as robbery. He gives little thought to the fact 

 that the price of grain has been increasing during the past ten 

 years and that wages for farm labor are not only higher but the 

 labor is difficult to obtain. The consumer should know that it 

 costs more to produce clean milk and that it means extra labor 

 and extra care, and the dairyman cannot be expected to produce 

 it without a reasonable profit. 



Thompson says it costs twice as much to keep a cow today 

 as it did ten years ago, and if milk kept pace in price with the feed 

 that goes into it, a fair price today would be 15 cents a quart. 



The majority of consumers do not know what good milk 

 is. 



ILLUSTRATION. 



The consumer needs to be educated, for it is through him 

 that this problem of clean milk will be eventually solved. If 



