ABSTRACT
Middlemen's costs too great—Need for improved marketing conditions—The work of the Co-operative Movement—The tendency of productive concerns to do their own marketing—Or to start joint selling syndicates —Similar to producers' Co-operative Societies—How far can such bodies control prices?—Bulk of distribution still 'unrationalised'—Dealers and their functions—Could these be performed more cheaply?—Desirability of stimulating the growth of consumers' co-operation—Co-operation and municipalisatian: their respective spheres—Position of the small trader —Progressive socialisation of large-scale retail distributing agencies—The promotion of joint selling agencies under State control—The produce Exchanges—Lessons of war-time control of trade—The rebuilding of Control Boards—The problem of prices—The Food Council—Need for a better technique of continuous investigation and report—And for a public mechanism for the control of prices—The organisation of the export trades—The future of the merchant capitalist.
