Marketing orders represent a policy for changing or affecting behavior in the marketing of fruit, vegetable and specialty crops or of milk. They alter the effective structure of the marketing system. These are long-standing programs, authorized in the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 and administered under an ongoing series of changing rules and regulations over the years. Many orders have been promulgated or amended since 1937. Regardless of the changes, many of the existing features are modifications of those originally included to deal with 1937 marketing system issues. Consolidation of orders, particularly for milk, and additions of new orders and termination of some existing orders for fruit, vegetable and specialty crops represent efforts to deal with structural change, business practices and competitive forces in the evolving marketing system over the years. Questions related to marketing orders and how effectively they serve their purposes to alter behavior in today's marketing system deserve attention. Competitive pressures and societal issues can impact the ability of marketing orders to accomplish their intended purposes.