Strawberry Growers Demand Outside Leadership
Kennewick berry farmers reject local management, insisting on professional oversight from outside the region to stabilize the market.
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A strictly f.o.b. system of selling, a manager selected from outside of Kennewick or Richland, and a collectable forfeiture imposed upon all members are features that the majority of strawberry growers insist must be written into the rules of their new cooperative marketing organization. At a meeting in the Commercial club rooms, growers representing 110 out of 163 acres pledged support. Wilmer Sieg, sales manager for the Hood River Apple Growers’ association, addressed the crowd, criticizing the local 'chaotic conditions' of the last two years as criminal. He argued that controlling the crop is necessary to ensure stability rather than monopoly, protecting buyers so they don't face fluctuating prices. The growers hope these strict rules will stop them from being their own worst competition.
“I’m ashamed of the growers of Kennewick and I wish I were a Billy Sunday that I might put the fear of God into your hearts.”
The tension between local control and the need for regional professionalization remains a hallmark of Pacific Northwest agricultural economics. Today's growers still grapple with market volatility and the challenge of balancing independence with the stability of a cooperative model.
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