DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


marketing of fruits and vegetables amounted to approxi-
mately $275,000.000 during the survey year, cotton $140.000,-
000, eggs and poultry $68,000,000.
 Although the number of marketing associations has not
increased during the past 10 years, the existing organiza-
tions appear to be operating over larger areas and handling
farm products more efficiently. Because of changing methods
of transportation and for other reasons, many smaller as-
sociations have combined into larger units of discontinued
operations. Both grain marketing and livestock shipping
associations have declined m number. This tendency to
decrease has been offset to a considerable extent by the
organization of cooperatives in other fields, such as vege-
tables, cotton and poultry. There are many more bargain-
ing associations than there were 10 years ago. There has
also been a noticeable increase in the use of auctions by
cooperatives as a means of selling eggs, fruits, and vege-
tables. Significant also is the fact that farmers' marketing
associations have increased the consumption of many farm
products through Nation-wide advertising and by cooperat-
ing with distributors in planning sales programs to "eat
more of this" or "drink more of that."
 The life expectancy of marketing cooperatives is con-
siderably longer than it was 20 years ago. The mortality
rate has decreased. The average length of life of associa-
tions in operation today is about 17 years, whereas the aver-
age life of associations which discontinued operations since
1900 was less than 10 years. Associations today are not
plagued by price-fixing schemes, misinformation, and mem-
bership disinterest to the extent that they were 20 years
ago. The childhood diseases of cooperative marketing are
passing.

 SPECIALTY CROPS
 Cooperatives are finding Nation-wide markets for fruits,
vegetables, and specialty crops which 10 or 15 years ago
enjoyed only a seasonal demand. The year-round demand