DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A MARKETING AGREEMENT 

 AND A MARKETING ORDER 



Marketing agreements and orders generally are spoken 

 of synonymously. Rarely is a marketing agreement established 

 without a marketing order; or an order established without 

 an agreement. When both a marketing agreement and an order 

 are used, their regulatory terms are identical. There is a 

 basic difference, however, A marketing agreement is an 

 agreement between the Secretary of Agriculture and the 

 handlers of a particular agricultural commodity. The agree- 

 ment is voluntary and its terms apply only to the handlers 

 who sign it. The marketing agreement alone seldom would 

 be effective in achieving the purposes of the Act since there 

 are always some handlers who fail to sign. 



Under a marketing order, though, the Secretary of Agri- 

 culture makes the terms of the marketing agreement pro- 

 gram effective on all handlers in the industry, whether or 

 not they sign the agreement. 



HOW A MARKETING ORDER IS INSTITUTED 

 A. Steps in Developing an Order. 



Developing a marketing agreement and order program 

 takes considerable time and effort on the part of the 

 growers, handlers, and others in the industry involved. 

 The following steps are necessary before a program 

 can be established: 



1. The preliminary proposal for a marketing order 

 program is drafted by growers and handlers in an 

 industry after they have analyzed their marketing 

 problems and concluded that a marketing order 

 program would be of benefit. There must be solid 

 support for a marketing program within the industry, 

 and general agreement should be reached on the types 

 of regulatory activity to be proposed. 



2. The industry proposal is submitted to the Secretary 

 of Agriculture, with a request for a public hearing. 

 The request for a hearing should be signed by in- 

 dividuals or organizations representing the majority 

 of the industry. 



