All too often, in developing countries, middlemen are dismissed out of hand as parasites. The argument made is that it is the producer who, by the sweat of his labour, provides the physical commodity and it is he/she who deserves to gain most from marketing transactions in that product. When it is observed that marketing costs are sometimes four or five times the price paid to the farmer, a sense of injustice can arise. However, the value, if any, that the intermediary adds to the product, by virtue of the functions performed, must be taken into account. McVey4 states that: