Le Nord : revue internationale des Pays de Nord - 01.06.1940, Side 175

CO-OPERATIVE MOVEMENT IN DENMARK 169
tories’ activities in particular led to a certain conflict with the
established private enterprises but after a short time the co-
operative organisations took the lead also in this branch of the
industry.
The interest in marketing for export of finished articles dis-
played through the co-operative bacon factories led to further
results especially from the period about the middle of the nineties.
At this time in the first place a co-operative society covering the
whole country was formed for the collection and exportation of
eggs, the particular significance being that each egg could be
marked to identify the producer and thereby establish his re-
sponsibility for the quality; and in the second place certain diffi-
culties in the butter trade and the ensuing friction between whole-
salers and farmers led to the establishment by the dairies of co-
operative societies for the exportation of butter. Finally it should
be noted that also the cattle trade and the export of cattle was
taken up by special co-operative cattle associations in the years
immediately before the end of last century.
It was, however, of special importance to the general deve-
lopment of the co-operative movement that almost simultane-
ously with the abovementioned enterprises co-operative societies
were formed to take over the other important function of agri-
culture, the importation of raw-materials. Co-operative insti-
tutions for purchasing feeding-stuffs were established as a result
of the farmers’ vital interest in the quality of their feeding-stuffs,
and at the same time of a certain friction between the big feeding-
stuff trade and large circles of farmers; corresponding motives
led to the formation in 1901 of an organisation for the importa-
tion and purchase of artificial fertilizers.
In addition to the co-operative enterprises of the agricultural
industry societies and organisations were formed for various
special purposes, such as the production or importation of cement,
the import of coal, dairy machinery etc. At a slightly later time
it is of interest to observe the foundation of a special society for
the production and marketing of seeds which subsequently entered
into an intimate collaboration with the co-operative stores. And
finally the last decades have brought the formation of a number
of insurance companies of various kinds and a special bank for
the co-operative movement and co-operative circles (Andelsban-
ken).
The annexed table, giving the number of existing societies,
their membership and turnover for the year 1939, shows the