PALMAR A LA SKA._Carl Res mussen, Editor.
Published every Friday at Palmer Alaska, by the Matjarmska Valley Farmers
Cooperating Association, for the purpose of giving news of the
Associations work, problems , accomplishemefes, local and general news.
Subscript ion by Mall 4 1.75 Yearly_Box $ 1.00, Single Copy IQ?
THE MATANUSKA VALLEY FARMER'S SECOND FRONT.
One of the major problems that has been faced by the farmers of this
Valley,has been the reluctance with which merchants of Anchorage and the
adjoining country have purchased our farm products. It was claimed by
these merchants, and perhaps justly so, that our products were inferior
to those, shipped in from the outside, and that we could not supply them
with enough or for a long enough peroid each year, so that it would justif
ehangeinfe from outside products to the local ones.
However, by organizing the Marketing Association, improving methods of
processing, makeing higher and better grades and doing considerable
advertising we have largely overcome this objection and we were able to
sell most of our products in the local aera at fair prices.
The early predjuce of the merchants was fast dissapearing as our prod
ucts became better,and our standards improved. The Editor believes that
our products are just ns good as any that can be obtained now, and that
some are far supiercr to most of the shipped In stuff.
There was no question about the fact,that our producers of vegrt’bles
at least, could produce several times the amount,that had been produced,
if some incentive were made to increase production, that is more money
to the growers and better sales conditions. So when the Army asked for
contracts for large amounts last spring and the prices v re upped, so
that it appeared that a good profit could be made, the fnrmers, through
the Co-op. Marketing Association, signed a contract and vastly increased
plans wer- made for production, of much larger amounts than had ever been
raised before and it appears that, In spite of cutworms and other things
of a like nature, that the harvest will be much larger than usual.
But now, some of the merchants of Anchorage are complaining, that they
arc unable to get our products and wonder why, well the answer ^eems to
be that, the Army is taking all that comes in and there just is/\ any moi .
And while the1 grower now enjoys an enviable position, with easy sales a4
good prices and the purchaser taking the stuff, right off of the loadinb
platform, therby solveing the transportation problem, which is now very
difficult, there may some danger of r. big backfire later on which would
hurt our • ’armors a lot.
Let us think about what is going to happen when the Army dosent need
such large amounts of our products and we have to depend on local markets
again, is it good policy to Ignore the local merchants entirely and
cause them to seek other means of getting the things that we will have
to sell to them, then, or to seek some means of trying to supply them
with at least part of our products now?
The Editor dosent know whether any thing will be available after the
Army contracts are filled or not, but if there is, then we feel that
it would be a bad mistake, to not try to keep the market that we will neec
when the present war is over. While it appears that several of our large
growers may make a good stake this fall, we doubt if it will be advise
able to just figure on what they can get this summer and let the rest go,
because we feel sure that very few of t hem will leuve this Valley and
that they will still be here raising vegatables and other products long
after the present conditions change.
We feel that it is very important that every effort be made to try to
provide the local merchants with the vegatables that they need, and we
also relize that there is considerable difficulty in getting transporta
tion and sufficient help to take care of the extra work involved, but can
we afford to leave a single stone unturned in our effort to build up and
maintain our sales to the local merchants?
UNCLE SAM NEEDS $ 7.500.00 ;'FR©M PALMER'AND VICINITY TO FILL
OUR QUOTA IN THE THIRD WAR LOAN, BUY BONDS TO INSURE VICTORY.