Measurement Standards and Market Governance: London Corn Trade Association and International Grain Markets (1880-1914)

Abstract

This article examines the work of the London Corn Trade Association (LCTA) in developing tools for measuring produce quality and resolving governance issues in international grain markets. The rules, practices, and routines for international grain traders standardized by LCTA aided commercial decision making, lowered transaction costs and facilitated dispute resolution between private economic actors. Its activities provide an ideal case to study the dynamics of governance in the transformation, expansion, and globalization of agricultural markets between c1880 and 1914. The article concludes that the organization’s real significance lies in its ability to facilitate the acceptance of different quality conventions within the markets, which was predicated upon the measurement infrastructure and standardized contracts LCTA devised for the international grain markets centred around London after c1880.