deliver the cans to their own processing plants 
on a backhaul basis. California Canners and 
Growers owns and operates its own fleet of 
trucks; Tri Valley contracts with a trucking 
agency for this service. 
According to C T Supply management, a suc- 
cessful operation requires year-round activ- 
ities, In the processing industry, which is 
basically seasonal, cans must be stored during 
the off-season. The processing cooperatives 
owning C T Supply must be able to handle the 
cans ona year-round basis as C T Supply has 
no warehousing facilities. Moreover, they 
cannot afford warehousing space for off-season 
storage of empty cans. Therefore, as the co- 
operatives move the finished products out dur- 
ing the off-season months, this warehouse 
space becomes available for storage of empty 
cans, 
According to an officer of one of the coopera- 
tives owning C T Supply, it had net savings of 
over $2 million in 1965. With a fully estab- 
lished operation in 1966, the owner coopera- 
tives expected sufficient savings to recover 
their combined investment of $9 million in 
about 3 years. 
PROBLEMS IN OPERATION 
The major problem facing C T Supply Com- 
pany is the rapid rate of technological advance- 
ment in the container industry. As C T Supply 
has only limited research and development 
facilities and budget, a major change would 
place this association at a definite disad- 
vantage. Currently, the equipment is depre- 
ciated over a 12-year period. Management 
believes, however, that it could adapt to major 
technological changes and supply the type of 
container demanded by the processor-owners. 
Winter Garden Citrus Products 
Cooperative, Winter Garden, Fla. 
The Winter Garden cooperative has owned 
and operated a small can-manufacturing plant 
for about 5 years as an integral part of its 
processing and marketing operations. Allcans 
manufactured are produced exclusively for its 
own use. The operations of the can plant are 
consolidated in the total operating statement 
of the cooperative. 
FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT USED 
The manufacturing plant is located in the 
same complex of buildings as the processing 
operations of the cooperative. When the can 
plant was started, it was installed in an exist- 
ing one-story building, 50' x 100', and all 
equipment was leased from a metals company. 
This enabled the cooperative to begin opera- 
tion with a minimum of invested capital. The 
equipment is currently on a 5-year lease. 
OPE RATIONS 
The plant maintains a relatively flexible 
operating position, depending on the demand 
for cans, During the canning season, Decem- 
ber through May, operations are conducted 
on a two-shift basis and at this time a maxi- 
mum of 16 persons may be employed. During 
the off-season, only one shift is utilized and 
employment drops to about 8 full-time em- 
ployees. Management believes that one of the 
essential aspects of a successful operation is 
the ability to operate on a year-round basis, 
Cans manufactured during the off-season are 
stored in the cooperative's warehouse as the 
finished products are moved out. 
Although detailed information on the plant's 
operation was not available, the total value of 
the cans manufactured was estimated to be 
between $2 million and $3 million. This would 
represent more than 50 percent of Winter 
Garden's needs. Total sales of the Winter 
Garden Cooperative in 1965 were reported at 
$25 million and the total value of cans used 
was between $3 million and $4 million, Manage- 
ment indicated that substantial savings (esti- 
mated at about 10 to 15 percent) were being 
made available to growers through the manu- 
facturing operation. 
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