Kennewick Merchants Organize to Save Berry Growers
Local business leaders launch a cooperative marketing scheme to stabilize the fluctuating strawberry market.
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For the purpose of investigating the possibilities of marketing all of next year’s strawberry crop under one control and through one agency, a meeting of the business and professional men of the city was held in the Commercial club rooms Tuesday evening. L. E. Johnson presided over the meeting as chairman and E. W. Trenbath was chosen secretary. In stating the purposes of the meeting, Mr. Johnson called attention to the experience of past seasons when the market for Kennewick strawberries had been demoralized because of the lack of organization among the producers. He said every year thousands of dollars were lost to the growers not because of competition from other districts, but for the reason that the local berries were sold through several distinct and competitive channels with no control over prices. The primary object is to line up the business interests unanimously behind one organization to give the co-operative marketing plan a thorough tryout for one season.
“In the past not only have the growers not been united but the business interests have been divided in their support of rival organizations.”
This early attempt at agricultural consolidation highlights the long-standing struggle of Kennewick growers to control the distribution of their crops. The push for a unified cooperative model reflects the historical tension between individual farming and the necessity of regional collective bargaining in Washington's agribusiness history.
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