The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, April 4, 1921, Page 5

How the Farmer Can Market His Grain % The Program Devised by the Committee of Seventeen Explained by . United States Senator E. F. Ladd of North Dakota BY DR. E. F. LADD Umted States Senator From North Dakota and Member of the Committee of Seventeen. zm | HAT promises-to be a great power for good, to benefit agriculture, stabilize prices on farm products and lessen cost of food to the consumer is con- tained in the recommendations of the Farmers’ Marketing Committee - of Seventeen. The new grain marketing plan, as out- lined by the committee, it is believed, will ultimately change the farmer’s marketing of his grain, live- stock and wool and also his method ef purchasing farm machinery, fertilizer and many other products. The plan for handling grain provides for the or- ganization of a nonstock, nonprofit association with membership limited to actual grain growers and officered by farmers, with no attempt to control or fix prices, but rather, through an orderly system of marketing, to permit the law of supply and demand to have full sway and to enable the farmer to so regulate the operation of his manufacturing or farm plant as to produce enough of each class of product to supply the country’s needs without an undue overproduction. The great benefit will be that farmers will be able to market their products in an orderly fashion from month to month as they may be needed and not all placed on the market just at the period of harvesting, as is the case at the present time, when all wheat is- practically dumped on the market in about 60 days. Under the proposed plan the farmers will gradually supply their produce from month to month as the same may be needed for manufacture or for consumption. i To do this the farmer must have long-time credit or the means of enabling him to meet-his obliga- tions as they mature in the fall. This the Commit- tee of Seventeen has provided for. As the wheat is delivered at the elevator the farmer is to receive a cash advance and participation certificates entitling him to all the returns for his wheat, less actual cost of marketing, under an orderly system such as is provided for by all other manufacturers of this country. By co-operation and a general sales agency the potato growers of Aroostook county, Maine, state that they saved $336,000 to the farmers in a single season for one county, besides on the purchase of fertilizer they saved the members an average of from $30 to $35 per ton over the prevailing price. ‘Why, then, should not the farmers of the whole country organize to the same end? The plan provides for the utilization of all exnst— ing agencies so far as they may care to become a part of the farmers’ marketing system. There are three steps in the proposed system: . 1. The grain grower. : ~ 2. The local co-operative elevator company or grain growers’ association. , 3. The central sales agency. The “grain grower” is any person who raises grain and any landlord or owner who receives a part or all of the grain grown on the land. GRAIN GROWER MUST JOIN BOTH 3 NATIONAL AND LOCAL ASSOCIATION The grain grower must do two thingsto gain ad- mission to the marketing organization. He must be a member of a co-operative elevator company or grain growers’ association and join the National Sales agency and pay a fee, probably of $10, for a five-year membership. He must also sign a con- tract to deliver all his surplus grain to the local elevator company or to the grain growers’ associa- tion for a period of five years. The farmer’s grain may be handled by any one of the following three methods: 1. The surplus g'ram of any locality may be pooled. 2. The grain may be sold for members on con- signment. : 3. It may be purchased outright from the mem- bers by the local elevator company or by the grain growers’ association. " Under the pooling system the grain may be sold Dr. E. F. Ladd. by the officials at any time that seems most favor- able and at the end of the pooling period or season there will be returned to each grower the average price received for his grade of grain for the season or pooling period léss the actual cost of handling the grain. To my mind the pooling system will in the long run be found the most satisfactory to all farmers. The farmer is in controk The farmers’ local co- operative elevator is to be the local unit and may become a part of the system. To do so the follow= ing conditions must prevail: 1. The elevator must be truly co-operative. 2.- Stock in the elevator must be available to every grain grower in the community. 8. Ownership of stock must be wholly limited to growers. Sales agency will undoubtedly be re- qulred It is proposed to allow a reasonable co-operative to make the necessary changes to meet these conditions. When there is no local co-operative .elevator there may be formed, by the National Sales agency, local grain growers’ associations to act as the agency for connecting the grain grow- ers with the National Sales agency so that all grain growing sections of the country may be provided for. This local company may select any of the following methods for the handling of grain: 1. They may contract with the local farmers’ elevator or even a line elevator to handle grain for a fixed charge. 2. They may rent an elevator to handle their grain. 3. They may build or buy an elevator as may be necessary. The local farmers’ elevator or grain growers’ as- sociation is the connecting link with the grain growers. The elevator company or grain growers’ association must now in turn have connection with the National Sales agency as follows: 1. It may sign a contract for five years with the National Sales agency to deliver zll its surplus grain to that sales agency. { 2. It may on consignment ship its grain to the National Sales agency, thus controlling both the time and place of sale for the grain. 8. Several of the local farmers’ elevator come- panies or associations may pool their grain and sell - 4. Membership in the National time for elevator companies not truly - through the National Sales agency. Thus all farm- ers in a given section of North Dakota growing the variety Kubanka wheat might unite to pool their variety of wheat in one great pool. On this wheat money might be advanced by the National Sales agency as a district group and when all the Ku- banka in the pool has been sold the farmers will be paid the balance due on their participation certifi- cates for that variety of wheat less the cost of handling. THE NATIONAL SALES AGENCY AND WHAT IT WILL DO - A board of directors will be the governing board of the National Sales agency.” They will employ the managers and all departmental heads or other employes and have general charge of the business as does a board of directors for any official body. Each cemmunity will elect one delegate for each 100 members to attend the annual congressional dis- trict meeting. Each congressional district will elect one delegate to attend the national meeting, and the delegates attending the national meeting will elect the board of directors for the National Sales agency. The National Sales agency will be a nonprofit, noncapital stock organization, thus removing all temptation of financial gain. 'All returns go direct to the grain growers through their local organiza- tion after deducting cost of operating. The National Sales agency may provide, if the directors so authorize: 1. Branch sales offices at important grain mar- kets to handle the grain for each natural grain dis- trict. 2. Terminal elevator service in connection with branch sales offices, either by contractual arrange- ments for same, or through the organization of a company, or companies, which would lease, buy or build terminal elevators. 3. Facilities for finaireing the marketing of grain by country elevators through the organiza- tion of a finance corporation, with capital stock sub- scribed for by the grower members. 4. Facilities for marketing the exportable sur- plus of grain through the orgamzatlon of an export corporation. 5. Service departments furmshmg mformatxon covering local, national and world-wide conditions, affecting the grain trade, also information and service in connection with transportation, legal, statistical and other problems. The initial working capital for the National Sales agency will naturally come from the membership (Continued on page 17) - HOW THE PROPOSED PLAN WOULD WORK NATION O L SALES AGENCY WHICH NTROLS TerMinac] | Finance Evam CoRPO- oreaN- RATION | |, |vzaTion As shown above the individual grain grower would be a member of the National Sales agency and would deliver his grain, under a five-year contract, either to his local co-operative elevator or to a local grain growers’ association. The local elevator or association would in turn deliver the grain, under the five-year contract plan, te the National Sales agency, which would control the other departments as shown in the diagram. PAGE FIVE : g .