A. Any association organized hereunder and complying with the terms hereof shall be deemed not to be a conspiracy nor a combination in restraint of trade nor an illegal monopoly; nor an attempt to lessen competition or to fix prices arbitrarily or to create a combination or pool in violation of any law of this state; and the contracts and agreements between the association and its members and any agreements authorized in this act [76-12-1 to 76-12-23 NMSA 1978] shall be considered not to be illegal nor in restraint of trade nor a part of conspiracy or combination to accomplish an improper or illegal purpose nor contrary to the provisions of any statute enacted against pooling or combinations.

B. An association organized hereunder may acquire, exchange, interpret and disseminate to its members, to other cooperative associations and otherwise, past, present and prospective, crop, market, statistical, economic and other similar information either directly or through an agent created or selected by it or by other associations acting in conjunction with it.

C. An association organized hereunder may advise its members in respect to the adjustment of their current and prospective production of agricultural commodities with due account of the prospective volume of consumption, selling prices and existing or potential surpluses to the end that every market may be served from the most convenient productive areas under a program of orderly marketing that will assure supplies without undue enhancement of prices or the accumulation of undue surpluses.

History: Laws 1937, ch. 152, § 18; 1941 Comp., § 48-1318; 1953 Comp., § 45-14-18.

Cross references. — For provision exempting nonprofit mutual help agricultural or horticultural organizations without capital stock from laws against monopolies or combinations in restraint of trade, see 57-1-4 NMSA 1978.

Compiler's notes. — For similar provision in earlier act, see Laws 1923, ch. 36, § 1.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 18 Am. Jur. 2d Cooperative Associations § 11.

Legality of combination among farmers, 25 A.L.R. 1113, 33 A.L.R. 247, 47 A.L.R. 936, 77 A.L.R. 405, 98 A.L.R. 1406, 12 A.L.R.2d 130.