The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, June 2, 1919, Page 3

"stopped. On the basis of the 25,000,- " ‘bears’ the signature. of at least 20 erly caring for the cream, and whether . In'the interest of a square deal -for the farmers VOL. 8, NO. 22 Tonparii§én Tader Official Magazine of the National Nonpartisan League A matazine that dares to print the truth WHOLE NUMBER 193 ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, JUNE 2, 1919 'Makmg North Dakota Safe for Dairying How New State Laws Protect Milk Producers From Exploitation at Hands ~ of Creameries—People Must Authorize Licenses BY J. J. OSTERHOUS (Dairy Commissioner of North Dakota) HE Nonpartisan league came in- to -existence as a result of the unorganized farmers’ objection to being “milked.” These farm- ers, now strongly organized in the Nonpartisan league, have placed themselves in a position effectively to resist the activi- ties of the corporate “milkers” and are going into a genuine and honest milking industry of their own. Dairying is rapidly developing in North Dakota on what appears to be a permanent foundation. Any industry mvolvmg so great an expenditure of labor and capital as dalry farming must be founded on' confidence if it is to be expected to show a healthy, vigorous growth. The most potent factor in encouraging production is confidence that the producer will be protected in marketing his product. The North Dakota dairy. commission has wasted very little time and energy following the old prac- tice of directly urging greater or more efficient production of dairy farming. It has adopted the other policy of doing whatever was within its power to provide the-incentive for dairying, believing that greater and more- efficient.production will follow naturally. - The purpose of the state dairy” commission has been to make the state “safe for dairying.” No one engaged in dairy farming in North Dakota should be deceived into believing that all - the leaks in our dairy marketing machinery have been 000 pounds of butterfat marketed from the state in 1918, it is conserva- tive to estimate that™$2,000,000 above an additional profit to all agencies handling the dairy farm product leak- ed out between the farm and the - wholesale butter market. Statutes enacted by the farmers legislature in 1917 and 1919 make pos- sible a program for the development and stabilizing of all phases of dairy- ing. All persons buying and testing cream are. required: to take out a cream testers’ license. The permit is- granted ol;ly to those who show‘to the satisfaction of the dairy commission that they understand the principles of the Babcock test for butterfat and that they are competent to test cor-- rectly the cream the producer mar- kets through the local cream station. These licenses' may be revoked or new licenses withheld from persons who attempt to manipulate - the ‘Babeock test or violate or fail to comply with any other provisions. PEOPLE OF DISTRICT" TO AUTHORIZE LICENSES . Cream stations also are required to- - obtain .a business license before be- ginning operation. - This license ‘is granted ‘only on an application that - cream producers of the community. The cream producers of - the stafe - through 'this provision have almost ' complete control’ of *16cal ‘marketing agencles. They may determine, before signing the application, that the party is rehable, has the facilities for prop- the market to whxch the huyer slups- h Tod: by their legislature last winter were “born with teeth.” have been considering the farmer a good thing are learning, too, that the ~ . farmers’ laws. have teeth. The dairy laws passed by the state, and . which are explained on this ‘page, are an example of _what has already been accomplished by these laws. available for receiving the shipment with a mini- mum of delay and shipping cost. Butter sells on the market on the quality basis, and the producer stands all the losses and waste caused by unneces- sary deterioration of the raw material. The volume of cream shipped outside the state for manufacture has not materially decreased in the last two years, but the percentage of our prod- uct' manufactured in other states is rapidly decreas- ing with the great increase in production, meaning that creameries in the state are taking care of the greater production. In 1918 half of the cream pro- duced went into other states, while in the first four months of this year only 25 per cent has left the state. ; The unnecessary duplication of cream stations adds another unnecessary expense to dairy farmers. In this state they are now supporting 1,000 cream buyers, who receive from 50 cents to $1.50 for serv- ices that could be performed by one-third that number. Discrimination in prices in years past prevented to a great extent the manufacture of all dairy products within the state. The anti-discrimination “law, passed in 1917, failed to control the vicious practices of manufacturers outside the state who purchased North Dakota cream. The new law passed by the 1919 session made it possible to . BORN WITH TEETH " ol ; ‘—-Dfawh expressly for the Leader by Congressman John M. Baer. Farmers of North Dakota are learning more and more that the laws passed The profiteers that control more effectively the discriminatory prac- tices of these concerns. The can registration act passed by the last leg- islature is designed to protect the investments of the owners of thousands of cans used in handling the raw material. . The indiscriminate use of cream cans has been the result of great waste and losses in handling our dairy products and has been onme: of the factors in holding the development of the industry in check. The new law will result in the elimination of many irresponsible cream buyers or: ° brokers who have been operating in the state and who very seldom had any investment. Such buyers have been known to purchase cream on a margin of 5 to 10 cents a pound for butterfat. Under the present law, a person to operate as a cream buyer must own his own cans and be entirely responsible for the conduct of his station. As a result, many of these cream buyers have now become agents of a creamery company, and are obliged to pay the same prices for butterfat as is being paid at other stations operated by the company he represents. MORE CREAMERIES IN STATE MAKING BUTTER Besides this, theré has been a great tendency toward the centralization of creameries, as a re- sult of which more of the cream produced will be manufactured into butter within the state. This will improve the quality advertisement for North Dakota as a dairying state. The mill and elevator - bill, which will result in the manufac- ture of our wheat into flour and mill by-products, will stimulate dairying, by the reason that the by-products of these mills are ex- cellent stock food. The bank bill will ‘enable the farmer to obtain - the necessary money at cheaper rates of interest to purchase greater numbers of high-grade- dairy cattle. The home builders’ bill will make it possible to build better farm buildings for the care of cattle. Perhaps. one of the most far-reach- ing and beneficial acts of the legisla- ' ture for the dairy industry has been “ the establishment of a state experi- mental creamery. The experimental ~ecreamery, which will be operated on a practical ‘and commercial basis, will endeavor to discover methods of im-. proving the quality of the cream; in- vestigate 'the comparative economy : and efficiency. of collecting and mar-" keting cream- under the various sys- tems and the comparative economy . and efficiency of the centralizer and creamery in serving the best interests of the state and the community; ex- periment on the practical and com- mercial ‘basis of handling eggs ‘and poultry in connection with the cream- ery or dairy manufacturing; investi- gate the problems connected with the storage and handling of butter; ex- periment in improving the quality of the manufactured product as a mini- mum cost; experiment in the manu- products; experiment in the opera- tions of laundries, bakeries, etc., in connection with creameries. 3 Another law, known as-the ofilcml’ 3 0 A (Oontinued on page 14) - : 3; s of of butter, and in addition will be an . | facture and utilization of dairy by- ' ;