There are plural production markets in the traditional vegetables producing center of the northern part of Saitama Prefecture. In these markets recently, handling volume of vegetables is decreasing remarkably, reflecting the decline of productivity. The decrease of handling volume is same in both, the local Agricultural Cooperative Association and the other side of Tone River, in Gunma Prefecture as well. The great increase of cargo collectivity of “direct sale center from producing district” operated by the Livelihood Coopetative Association which started from 1973 is greatly influencing the production markets especially Johbu production market and its brokers.
Under such circumstances, the brokers belonging to production markets have been differentiated from the type of shipment only into 3 patterns, “shipment”, “processing” and “processing and shipment” since 1970's, and more over from the margin merchant to the commission mercant, they are gradually strengthening the character. This is considered to mean internally the trend of superfluous brokers related to the decline of productivity, and the completion of oligopolistic System by leading influencial traders produced by the aforementioned trend. And externally it is conceivable to mean the development of transportation means and thec hange of distribution system.
Finally, the brokers who could secure deversified collecting methods, who could obtain close-grained delivery spots avoiding the shipping network of the Agricultural Cooperative Association and who could establish distribution routes outside the market will continue to exist, but it is observed that those who failed will have to reduce its business or have to become a subcontractor of a leading trader. In a sense, among the brokers belonging to the production markets in the northern part of Saitama Prefecture, it can be said that the simultaneous advancement of strata defferentiation indication is going on with the trigger of the decline of vegetables productivity and the competition of cargo collection.

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