Rural COOPE

November / December 2014

RATIVES

STAYING

RELEVANT 

Page 14

Survey shows co-ops

remain vital for

members
By Ramsey Margolis

e-mail: ramsey@huia.coop

Editor’s note: Margolis is a writer, speaker and cooperative

business development strategist and founder of Huia CDS, a

consulting business in Wellington, New Zealand. He served as

executive director of Cooperative Business New Zealand from 2006

to 2013. This article is slightly adapted from one that originally

appeared in “Real Farmer,” published by Ruralco.

“I only sell the co-op half of what I

produce; that way I keep them

honest.”

The above words were spoken by a memberowner of a small cooperative during its

annual meeting. He didn’t realize that he was

shooting himself in the foot, and it should

come as no surprise that neither the

cooperative nor its member-owners were doing very well.

Not only did that shareholder’s actions reduce his own

income from the cooperative, but that year every member

lost out. 

Put simply, he wasn’t engaged enough to know that the

cooperative was his business, and he did not realize its

importance to his own success.

Speaking to people about cooperatives, one of the first

questions I often ask is this: “Is your cooperative an extension

of your business, or is it your other business?” How would

you answer that?

Farmers in New Zealand are generally involved with more

than one cooperative, and the answer will be different for

each. They may get supplies from one cooperative and

fertilizer from another, and it’s likely that they are involved in

an irrigation cooperative as well. They might also be

marketing their products through a cooperative, such as a

dairy co-op, a fruit growers’ co-op or a meat co-op. They

may well get insurance from a mutually owned insurance

business. Their relationship to their co-ops is very similar to

that of producers in the United States. 

Because farmers are usually more involved with some

cooperatives than others, whether a cooperative is viewed as

an extension of their business or as their “other business” will

differ according to how important a particular cooperative is

to their farm or ranch — their primary business.

But one thing that is true for all the cooperatives with

which members trade is that, as one of the shareholders of a

co-op, they need to look after their co-op(s) with as much

care as their primary business.

Whether in New Zealand or America, cooperatives help

your farm by providing the supplies and services you need for

the business to run economically; at the other end of the

process, your co-op gives you competitive returns for what

you produce.

As farmers and growers, you use a co-op as your business

because you want a self-help solution to a business

opportunity. Collaborating with others as part of a

cooperative offers that opportunity, whereas on your own,

you just can’t achieve the success you’re looking for.

In a cooperative, you will find genuine democratic control

of the business. The benefits you receive throughout the year,

as well as at the end of each year, are based on your

participation.

Cooperatives are not profit-maximizing entities for

themselves. Rather, they either buy inputs as cheaply as

possible and sell to member-owners as cheaply as possible, or

they pay the highest possible price for your produce, then sell

it for as much as possible. 

In short, co-ops are in business to maximize the profits of

their shareholders’ primary businesses, while the cooperative

itself is profit conscious — aiming to do better than break

even. Otherwise, member-owners would need to support

their co-op if it were to incur a loss.

In “accountant speak,” member benefits derived from

belonging to a cooperative are “above the line.” Co-ops are

in business to serve the needs of member-owners by ensuring

availability of services. They strive to provide better levels of

service with either lower charges or higher payments. A

cooperative might also act as the representative of memberowners in a particular industry.

Cooperatives are in business for the long run, and while

most people support their cooperatives through thick and

thin, sadly not all do. Cooperatives build up the muscle they

need to support all members by getting maximum support

from all of them. As a co-op member, remember that you’re

one of the owners, that you have a say in how that business is

run and that the prosperity of your cooperative is as

important to you as the prosperity of your farm. ■

2 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Commentary 

Co-ops: an extension of your farm business 

— or your other business?
Features

Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 3

Volume 81, Number 6

November/December 2014

Rural Cooperatives (1088-8845) is

published bimonthly by USDA Rural

Development, 1400 Independence Ave.

SW, Stop 0705, Washington, DC. 20250-

0705.

The Secretary of Agriculture has

determined that publication of this

periodical is necessary in the transaction

of public business required by law of the

Department. Periodicals postage paid at

Washington, DC. and additional mailing

offices. Copies may be obtained from the

Superintendent of Documents,

Government Printing Office, Washington,

DC, 20402, at $23 per year. Postmaster:

send address change to: Rural

Cooperatives, USDA/RBS, Stop 3255,

Wash., DC 20250-3255.

Mention in Rural Cooperatives of

company and brand names does not

signify endorsement over other

companies’ products and services.

Unless otherwise stated, articles in this

publication are not copyrighted and may

be reprinted freely. Any opinions expressed are those of the writers, and do not

necessarily reflect those of USDA or its

employees.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture

(USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its

programs and activities on the basis of

race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital

status, familial status, parental status,

religion, sexual orientation, genetic

information, political beliefs, reprisal, or

because all or part of an individual’s

income is derived from any public

assistance program. (Not all prohibited

bases apply to all programs.) Persons

with disabilities who require alternative

means for communication of program

information (Braille, large print, audiotape,

etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET

Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write

to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights,

1400 Independence Avenue, S.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call (800)

795-3272 (voice), or (202) 720-6382 (TDD).

USDA is an equal opportunity provider

and employer.

Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture

Doug O’Brien, Acting Under Secretary,

USDA Rural Development

Dan Campbell, Editor

Stephen A. Thompson, Assistant Editor

Stephen Hall / KOTA, Design

Have a cooperative-related question?

Call (202) 720-6483, or email:

coopinfo@wdc.usda.gov

This publication was printed with vegetable oil-based ink.

08 Co-op Month ‘14: Much to celebrate, but much more to do 

By Doug O’Brien

11 Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions, 2000-2013 

By E. Eldon Eversull

14 Staying Relevant 

Survey shows that co-ops are still vital to members, but more effort needed to connect with young

producers

20 Finding Courage

Author discusses her research into use of cooperatives by African-Americans

24 Gauging Performance

An ‘extra value’ assessment of the nation’s top 18 dairy co-ops, 1992-2012

K. Charles Ling 

Departments

02 COMMENTARY

04 VALUE-ADDED CORNER

18 IN THE SPOTLIGHT

28 NEWSLINE

37 2014 ARTICLE INDEX

p. 4

ON THE COVER: “I see a bright future ahead if we can

continue to react positively and swiftly to the needs of

farmers in Tennessee and the other states we serve,”

says dairy farmer Stephen Philpott, a director with

Tennessee Farmers Cooperative (TFC). His co-op has

launched initiatives to help members incorporate new

technologies on their farms — just one way co-ops are

staying relevant. See page 14. Photo by Chris Villines,

Courtesy TFC

p. 14 p. 20
Editor’s note: Portions of this article

were excerpted and adapted from the

website of the North America Aronia

Cooperative. 

The aronia berry is a

small purple berry that

has been getting a lot

of “good press” lately,

causing U.S. producers

and consumers to pay a great deal more

of interest to this fruit that has long

been grown commercially only in

Europe, even though it is native to

North America. 

That’s because the little berry packs

a big nutritional punch, being rich in

antioxidants. The aronia berry is tart

and dry and grows on shrubs, similar to

blueberries. Berries can be transformed

into a large variety of products,

including juices, teas, sauces, jellies,

natural colorants and nutritional

supplements.

The berries are being grown by

increasing numbers of farmers in the

Midwest, and the demand for the fruit

is growing. The North America Aronia

Cooperative was formed in 2014 to

develop a network of growers who can

jointly promote, educate and share

resources among the members. 

The aronia cooperative now has

Value-Added Corner 

Aronia berry co-op among recipients of 

$25 million in USDA value-added grants

4 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Interest in products made from aronia berries

is increasing, due in large part to their high

content of antioxidants. This girl is helping to

pick aronia berries on Calow Berry Farms in

Arlington, Neb. Photo courtesy North America

Aronia Cooperative
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 5

members in seven states and Canada,

including South Dakota, Nebraska,

Iowa, Wisconsin, Missouri, Minnesota,

Illinois and Quebec. The cooperative is

the largest source for U.S.-grown

aronia berries, with the potential to

supply about 20 million pounds of fruit

annually. 

The co-op just received a $200,000

Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG)

from USDA Rural Development to use

as working capital needed to assist the

co-op in developing new markets and

grow its sales. 

“The grant funds will be used

primarily for marketing and processing

value-added aronia products to position

the co-op to partner with food and

beverage companies,” says Colleen

Nipp, chairman of North America

Aronia Cooperative.

Grants to help 247 producers

The berry co-op is just one of 247

recipients, announced in August, of $25

million in VAPGs from USDA Rural

Development. These investments will

help recipients, including farmer

cooperatives and producer-owned

limited liability companies (LLCs),

expand operations to turn commodities

into value-added products. 

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack

made the VAPG awards announcement

during a visit to Miles Smith Farm in

Loudon, N.H., a recipient of a VAPG.

The program helps agricultural

producers grow their businesses by

turning raw commodities into valueadded products, expanding marketing

opportunities and developing new uses

for existing products. 

“The funding we are announcing

will have far-reaching, positive impacts

in rural communities across the

country,” Vilsack said. “The

investments will help businesses create

new products, expand their operations

and support local and regional food

systems. The new Farm Bill expands

this program to provide even more of

these opportunities.”

By helping farmers and ranchers turn

commodities into value-added products,

producers can take better advantage of

new markets and keep more dollars

generated from the sale of their

products at home, supporting their local

communities. 

VAPGs worth more than $2.5

million were awarded to 20 producerowned co-ops. 

Other co-op recipients include

Idaho’s Bounty Co-op Inc., which

received $48,000 to pay labor,

marketing and distribution costs to

market and deliver local, sustainably

produced meat, eggs, cheese, poultry,

fruit, vegetables and added-value

products to new demographic and

geographic regions not previously

served by the co-op.

Pacific Coast Producers in California

will use its $200,000 VAPG to help

develop a new sliced-tomato product

line. Heartland Cooperative Services

will use its $200,000 VAPG for valueadded marketing activities that will

expand sales of omega-3 milk for

cheese. 

Since 2009, USDA has awarded 863

Value-Added Producer Grants totaling

$108 million. About 20 percent of the

grants and 16 percent of total funding

has been awarded to beginning farmers

and ranchers. 

The 2014 Farm Bill increases

mandatory funding for the program

from $15 million to $63 million over

five years, while also reauthorizing an

additional $40 million in discretionary

funding. The grants can be used to

support local and regional food systems,

further the development of the growing

bio-economy, or to finance the

distribution of local and regional

products, among other uses.

Miles Smith Farm received a

$127,000 VAPG to market and produce

burgers made from 55 percent grass-fed

beef and 45 percent organically raised

pork. Mixing the two meats creates an

ideal fat and flavor level that grass-fed

ground beef does not have alone. 

Value-Added Producer Grants are an

element of USDA’s Know Your Farmer,

Know Your Food initiative, which

coordinates USDA’s work to support

local and regional food systems. View a

full list of VAPG recipients at:

www.rurdev.usda.gov. ■

Editor’s note: Portions of this article are excerpted and

adapted from the website of the Side Hill Farmers’

Cooperative. 

Until recently, most beef and other meats raised in the

Madison County area of central New York were shipped

out of state for slaughter, eventually winding up on

dinner plates in New York City. So when the Side Hill

Farmers Cooperative was formed eight years ago, the

driving concept was to add value to its products and

market them locally. With 40,000 people within a 60-

mile radius of its production area, there were plenty of

“local plates” to fill. 

Thanks to an active Agricultural Economic

Development program, many new farmers have moved

to Madison County, looking for opportunities to produce

and market their livestock and produce. The Side Hill

Farmers members hoped their co-op would not only

help improve the fortunes of the members, but also

provide opportunities to their increasingly diverse

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through own retail outlet 
6 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

farming community and boost the overall regional ag

economy. 

The initial focus was for the co-op to open a local

slaughter facility. But about that time, an existing local

slaughter plant re-opened, so that need became less pressing.

The members decided instead to use the co-op “to create

vehicles that would allow farmers to control their own

product, from seed to plate.” Side Hill Farmers Meats &

Market in Manlius, N.Y., is just such a vehicle, a retail shop

with local product — meat, dairy, grains, produce and dishes

that combine them — sourced from nearby farms. 

The operation centers on a “craft butcher shop,” which

does butchery (but not slaughtering) and whole-animal

utilization of beef, pork, lamb and poultry. All meat sold in

the store is local and natural (raised without administered

hormones or prophylactic antibiotics).

“We also do our own smoking and cooking of bacon,

hams, and deli meats,” says Greg Rhoad, the managing chef

at Side Hill Farmers Meats & Market. All parts of animals

are used, with cuts going into the meat cases or into prepared

dishes, sauces and soup stocks, as well as ready-to-eat deli

sandwiches and soups. The co-op does its own curing and

dry-aging of meats and offers both grass- and grain-finished

beef. Product offerings in the store have been expanded to

include eggs, yogurt, milk and cheese, among others.

Business ahead of projections

A year and a half after opening, Rhoads says business has

been “exceptional — surpassing all our projections.” Secondyear revenue is up 33 percent to date from the strong

opening year. There is great potential for further growth, and

the $200,000 Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) the coop recently received from USDA Rural Development will be

used to expand consumer awareness of its meat products and

to develop systems that will make the retail operation

A sample of beef cuts and prepared meals, displayed here by Managing Chef Greg Rhoad and counter worker Hannah Grajko, that are proving

popular with consumers looking for home-grown foods from the Madison County, N.Y., area. Butcher Dan Putnam is in the rear. Photos courtesy

Side Hill Farmers Co-op

continued on page 34

Darrell Griff (left) raises Berkshire-cross hogs on his farm in Hamilton,

N.Y. The pork will be marketed through the Side Hill Farmers

Cooperative shop.
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 7

Arizona North Leupp Family Farms $26,268 Rural Development funds will be used to determine the feasibility of the farmer

cooperative producing blue cornmeal from Navajo corns, providing cold storage and

establishing a moblie market to sell products locally on the Navajo Nation.

Arizona San Xavier Cooperative Association $52,206 Rural Development funds will be used to determine the feasibility of the farmer

cooperative producing various types of flour, providing cold storage and establishing a

central market to sell products locally.

California Pacific Coast Producers $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to help fund the development of a new, meal-ready

sliced canned tomatoes product line.

California Blue Diamond $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to offset the high costs of an international market

introduction and will spent on freight, processing and personnel costs necessary to

ensure this venture's success.

California Challenge Dairy Products, Inc. $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to help with grocery slotting fees to offset the high

costs of new market introduction of New Cream Cheese.

California Sunsweet Growers Inc. $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to increase grower returns through the processing

and marketing of D'Noir Prune Juice.

Georgia Michigan Blueberry Growers Association $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to help the blueberry growers pay for processing

costs at the packing plant in Georgia.

Idaho Idaho's Bounty Co-op, Inc. $48,000 Rural Development funds will be used to pay labor, marketing and distribution costs to

market and deliver local, sustainably produced meat, eggs, cheese, poultry, fruit,

vegetables and added-value products to demographic and geographic regions not

previously marketed to by the producers in Idaho’s Bounty Co-op.

Indiana Hoosier Harvest Market LLC $50,000 Rural Development funds will be used to expand the marketing capabilities of this

cooperative food hub and the farmers it serves.

Iowa North American Aronia Cooperative $200,000 Rural Development funds are made available to agricultural producers seeking to

establish or expand markets for their value-added agricultural products and to provide

critical working capital to assist in developing new markets and growing sales.

Maryland Garrett Growers Cooperative, Inc. $16,115 Rural Development funds will be used to hire a coordinator and delivery personnel to

expand the market area of Garrett Growers Cooperative, to sell fresh produce to new

outlets in and around Garrett County, expand the amount of produce sold to current

outlets, and to develop a cooperative Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) service.

Maryland Chesapeake Fields Farmer’s Cooperative $33,370 Rural Development funds will be used to hire a co-op manager to expand customer and

member base.

Massachusetts Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc. $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to assist with processing costs to produce 100,000

cases of PACT, a new beverage platform, using natural cranberry extract.

Minnesota Stones Throw Agricultural Cooperative $49,950 Rural Development funds will be used for expansion of a marketing and distribution

cooperative serving immigrant farmers and other beginning farmers.

Missouri Ozark Famers Agricultural Cooperative (OFAC) $50,000 Rural Development funds will be used to assist with the cost of a feasibility study for a

food hub and distribution center in West Plains, Mo., which will serve consumers in both

Missouri and Arkansas.

New York Side Hill Farmers Cooperative, Inc. $199,426 Rural Development funds will be used to expand consumer awareness of Side Hill

Farmers Cooperative branded beef and pork products, which are marketed through the

co-op's retail store.

Pennsylvania Penn's Corner Farm Alliance $49,800 Rural Development funds will be used to help pay for UPC codes, processing, marketing

and labeling costs associated with ongoing development of a value-added product line.

Canned tomatoes, salsas, jams, sauerkraut and pickles are some of the items that will be

produced for both CSA and retail outlets.

Wisconsin Heartland Cooperative Services $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used for value-added marketing activities associated

with expanding the sales of omega-3 milk for omega-3 cheese.

Wisconsin Westby Cooperative Creamery $200,000 Rural Development funds will be used to expand the product line and market organic

Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt has about double the protein and a much different nutritional

profile compared to regular yogurt. Organic Greek yogurt offers higher margins and

prices, positively impacting the sustainability of this 111-year-old farmer co-op.

Wisconsin Fifth Season Cooperative $197,696 Rural Development funds will be used to support custom processing, labor and other

working capital and marketing needs as it expands its IQF (individually quick frozen)

vegetable blends to institutional market channels. 

$2,572,831

STATE AWARD RECIPIENT AWARD AMOUNT PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Co-op recipients of 2014 USDA Value-Added Producer Grants
By Doug O’Brien, Acting Under Secretary, 

USDA Rural Development 

There was much to celebrate all across the

United States during National Cooperative

Month in October. The U.S. co-op business

sector, after all, is thriving, generating about

$650 billion in annual sales and accounting

for more than 2 million jobs. Agricultural co-ops alone

generated a record $246 billion in revenue and had record

net income of $6.2 billion in 2013. And ag co-ops increased

their number of full-time jobs by 5 percent. 

But the cooperative business model remains a “best-kept

secret” for far too many people who could be benefiting from

membership in co-ops. It is thus imperative that everyone

involved with cooperatives make co-op education and

outreach a major priority in the year ahead. That was one of

the primary messages of a National Co-op Month forum at

the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Oct. 22,

sponsored by the National Cooperative Business Association

(NCBA).

I was invited to be one of the speakers at this gathering,

during which I used the opportunity to issue three challenges

to our nation’s cooperatives and those who work with co-ops:

• Look to forge new partnerships that can advance the

cooperative sector;

• Strive to innovate, always looking for new ways to make

your co-op a better resource for its members and their

communities;

• Don’t be afraid to take some well-calculated risks.

I grew up on a farm in Iowa, drinking milk from the Swiss

Valley cooperative and where we depended on co-ops for our

animal feed, farm supplies and our electricity. So I know how

vital co-ops are to rural people and of their potential to help

even more people. There are historic opportunities for the

growth of co-ops in America, and co-ops have a role to play

in helping to improve the living conditions for the nearly one

in four kids in the United States who lives in poverty. 

More challenges

Michael Beall, NCBA president, also issued three

challenges geared to strengthening the co-op sector:

• Self-identify as a co-op by adopting the “.coop” Internet

domain name; 

• Work with your co-op boards to find new ways to achieve

8 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

T

CO-OP MONTH ‘14

Much

to celebrate,

but much more

to do


Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 9

cross-sector collaborations, reaching out to other types of

cooperatives to achieve common goals;

• “As individuals, choose to bring more co-ops into your

life.” For consumers, that could mean joining a food co-op

or credit union, buying co-op branded foods and other

products, looking for a co-op preschool for your children,

etc. 

The need to get instruction about co-ops incorporated

into the curriculum of more secondary schools and colleges

was stressed several times during the forum. It is all too

common that students can earn a master’s degree in business

administration without ever having been taught even the

most basic concepts of the co-op business model. 

Even when students do get some training in co-ops and

are enthused about them, co-ops often don’t keep them in the

fold. Beall cited the example of a very successful, student-run

credit union at Georgetown University. But the co-op leaders

usually wind up going to work for Wall Street firms, not a

cooperative. He called the situation a “co-op brain drain.” 

The surging interest in local and regional foods has given

birth to a new wave of cooperatives, and these are often being

formed by young people, many of whom may have known

little, or nothing, about co-ops in the past. Beall also noted

the trend of new co-op brew pubs around the nation is

exposing many people in their 20s and 30s to the benefits of

co-ops.

Untapped potential

Despite many successes in recent years, the co-op sector in

America is not even close to reaching its potential. “We’re

swinging below our weight,” said panelist Charles Snyder,

president of National Cooperative Bank (NCB), adding that

the co-op sector should be a far more powerful force in the

economy than it is.

Even the best intentions and most worthwhile goals will

go for naught if a co-op does not operate on sound business

principles and hire skilled management. “No margin, no

mission,” said Snyder, citing a common axiom among

bankers. 

NCB generates positive publicity about co-ops each

October through the release of its annual “NCB Top 100

Co-ops” list (see page 31 for more). Snyder said the list

Co-ops should forge new partnerships and innovate to better serve their members, Doug O’Brien, acting under secretary for USDA Rural

Development, said during a Cooperative Month Forum in Washington, D.C. Looking on are panel members Lillian Solerno, administrator for USDA’s

Rural Business-Cooperative Service, and Charles Snyder, president and CEO of National Cooperative Bank. USDA photo by Dan Campbell
10 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

shows just how successful co-ops are

in a variety of economic sectors, with

total revenue for 2013 of $234.5

billion, a 3.6-percent increase from

2012. 

Need more evidence of the

market clout of co-ops? Consider

this: the combined revenue of the

world’s 300 largest co-ops would

about equal the $2.2 trillion gross

domestic product of Brazil, the

world’s 8th largest economy. 

Several speakers mentioned the

Jackson Rising conference — which

drew about 1,000 people last May to

Jackson, Miss. — as an example of an

exciting event that helped expose

more people to co-op concepts. “The

primary objectives of the conference

were to stimulate the creation of cooperative enterprises in

Jackson to [address] unmet economic and social needs,”

according to the conference website. The event also helped

launch Cooperation Jackson, “an emerging cooperative

network that is building four interdependent and

interconnected institutions: a federation of emerging worker

cooperatives, a cooperative incubator, a cooperative education

and training center, and a cooperative bank or financial

institution.” 

Complicating the creation of new co-ops in Mississippi

and many other states in the South is the lack of state

cooperative laws, Beall said, adding that NCBA is working to

bring together lawyers, accountants and others with expertise

in co-ops to develop strategies for addressing the situation.

Progress on many fronts

A sampling of points made by other panelists during the

forum included:

■ Cooperatives fit in well with the model of a “shared

economy,” a concept that is attracting a great deal of interest,

especially among young people, said Lillian Solerno,

administrator of the Rural Business-Cooperative Service, part

of USDA Rural Development. She noted that the growth of

interest in local foods in the Washington metro area is so

great that it is almost impossible to go into a restaurant

without seeing a card on the table or a note in the menu

trumpeting the restaurant’s use of locally grown foods, such

as heirloom tomatoes. Solerno oversees a number of loan and

grant programs that aid in the establishment and growth of

rural co-ops and other businesses. The day after the forum,

USDA and NCBA held a webinar that discussed proposed

changes to USDA’s Business and Industry (B&I) Guaranteed

Loan program that could make it easier for co-ops to benefit

from the program. (An article with highlights of that webinar

will be included in the Jan-Feb.

issue of Rural Cooperatives.) 

■ Ann Marie Mehlum, associate

administrator with the U.S. Small

Business Administration, said

changes have also been made in

SBA programs, with more in the

works, that will make it easier for

the agency to work with co-ops.

She said SBA has worked closely

with NCBA and NCB for more

than 30 years and will continue to

do so as it strives to throw its

support behind the growth of the

co-op sector.

■ Debbie Trocha, executive

director with the Indiana

Cooperative Development Center,

said the nation’s network of more

than 30 co-op development centers is helping to launch new

co-ops all across the country. As an indication of the rising

tide of interest in local foods, she noted that her center in

2010 began sponsoring a conference in Bloomington, Ind.,

for people interested in launching new food co-ops, food

hubs or farmers markets. That first event attracted about 30

people. This year, the now two-day event attracted more than

100 people. Her co-op center helped to create Indiana’s first

food hub (a facility that aids local producers in the

aggregation and distribution of their products). In this case,

Hoosier Harvest Market is a “virtual food hub,” which

maintains a website on which producers post their product

availability and which consumers use to place orders. USDA

Rural Development helps to finance co-op development

centers through its Rural Cooperative Development Grant

Program. 

■ Leta Mach, representing Parent Cooperative Preschools

International (PCPI), spoke about how preschool co-ops can

help provide a nurturing learning environment for children.

These co-ops depend on high levels of parental participation.

PCPI represents more than 50,000 families and teachers,

providing ongoing support to families, educators and social

agencies. In the past year, the organization has engaged in

talks with the U.S. Department of Education about how

preschool co-ops benefit children, she said. Mach also

discussed the Greenbelt Cooperative Alliance, an

organization of six community co-ops in the Washington,

D.C., suburb of Greenbelt, Md., that work together to

improve the quality of life for residents. 

This is just a sampling of the many exciting developments

occurring in the co-op sector that should help to inspire us

all to redouble our efforts — not just during Cooperative

Month, but throughout the year — to help build a better

world by spreading the word about cooperatives. ■

Ways in which co-ops can provide economic

opportunities for more people were explored during the

Jackson Rising conference last spring in Jackson, Miss.

This panel talk included Michael Beall, president of the

National Cooperative Business Association (second

from right).
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 11

By E. Eldon Eversull

Agricultural Economist

USDA Co-op Program

e-mail: Eldon.eversull@wdc.usda.gov

There have been many

changes among farmer,

rancher and fishery

cooperatives during the

past 35 years. But the

biggest change is undoubtedly the

consolidation that has occurred within

the ag co-op sector. Most local co-ops

have merged and merged again, often

forming “super locals” and even larger

regional cooperatives. 

Other ag co-ops now “gone from the

ranks” converted into investor-owned

firms (IOFs) or were bought out by

IOFs. Others simply closed their doors

due to competition or changes in their

territory and markets. While today’s

larger co-ops exert a lot more

marketing clout for their members, they

continue to face many of the same

challenges as did the typically smaller

co-ops of 35 years ago. 

There were 6,445 farmer

cooperatives in 1979 vs. 2,186 in 2014.

At the same time, the $77 billion in

revenue that ag co-ops earned in 1979

has been eclipsed. While fewer in

number, the larger ag co-ops of today

set an all-time co-op sales record in

2013: $256 billion. This is a rate of

growth of 5 percent per year, just

slightly less than the 6-percent rate of

inflation in the Consumer Price Index

over the same time period. 

This article looks at how cooperative

mergers, consolidations, acquisitions

and conversions have changed the ag

co-op sector between 2000 and 2013. 

Short-term trend

In the early 2000s, conversion of ag

co-ops to investor-owned firms (IOFs)

seemed to be a trend for the new

millennium. Eight ag cooperatives

converted to IOFs or were acquired by

IOFs in the first few years of the new

century. Two of these cooperatives had

previously ranked No. 1 on USDA’s

annual list of the top 100 cooperatives.

The other six were also large co-ops,

each with annual sales in excess of $100

million (table 1). 

Three more co-ops converted to, or

were purchased by, IOFs in 2005, but

the trend then slowed as the majority of

large cooperatives that ceased individual

operations did so due to a merger or

consolidation with other cooperatives

(figure 1).

The information in table 1 was

compiled from local and national news

Co-op Mergers,

Acquistitions

2000–2013

Editor’s note

This is the author’s final article for “Rural

Cooperatives.” Eversull is retiring Jan. 1 after a career

of 35 years as an ag economist at USDA. Since 2001,

he has led the statistics unit of USDA Cooperative

Programs, where he directed USDA’s annual survey of

farmer, rancher and fishery cooperatives. 

From 1988 to 2001, he directed Cooperative

Programs’ research, education and technical

assistance program on farm supply cooperatives. Prior

to that, Eversull was a staff economist with USDA’s

Food and Nutrition Service. He began his USDA career

as a grain/oilseed specialist with USDA’s Economics,

Statistics and Cooperative Service. 

Eversull grew up on a grain farm in Iowa, of which

he continues to be part owner. He received bachelors

and masters degrees in ag economics from Iowa State

University. 

Concrete is poured for new silos being built by Central

Valley Ag Cooperative (CVAC) in Nebraska, which

recently merged with United Farmers Cooperative.

“Speed and space is ‘king’ today in grain and

agronomy for our producers,” says Reed Nelsen, the

co-op’s senior vice president for marketing. Photo

courtesy CVAC
12 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

sources. (USDA Cooperative Programs

never uses information from its

statistical survey to publish information

about an individual cooperative without

first obtaining the cooperative’s

permission.) Some of the cooperatives

that converted to, or were acquired by,

IOFs also had their meat packing

operation or some of their supply

outlets purchased by other

cooperatives. Aggregate information

from our database has been combined

with the public information for the

other tables in this article. 

From 2000 through 2013, 1,181

U.S. ag cooperatives ceased operations

(table 2). Cooperatives that merged or

consolidated with other cooperatives

comprised 46 percent of these, while

cooperatives that converted to, or were

acquired by, IOFs represented 12

percent of the total. 

We were unable to determine the

reason for the other co-ops that ceased

operating — 42 percent of the 1,181.

In these cases, surveys were returned

stating that the co-op no longer was in

business, but no reason was given (such

as bankruptcy, merger or consolidation

with another cooperative or purchase

or conversion to an IOF). The

“unknown” group also includes mail

returned as “undeliverable,” meaning

there was no longer a business at the

address. 

While “unknown” is a big category,

representing 42 percent of the co-ops

that ceased operations, these

cooperatives tended to be small, with

combined sales representing less than 9

percent ($2.6 billion) of the total $30

billion in sales made by the 1,181 coops that ceased operations from 2000-

2013. 

Mergers vs. IOF conversion

Cooperatives that merged or

consolidated with other co-ops had

$13.9 billion in sales while cooperatives

that converted to, or were acquired by,

IOFs had $13.7 billion in sales (45

percent of the total). The merged or

consolidated cooperatives — as well as

Merged or consolidated Cooperatives acquired by IOFs

with other cooperatives or converted to an IOF

2000 Interstate Producers 

Livestock Assoc., IL Minnesota Corn Processors, MN

2001 Calavo Growers Inc., CA

Crestland Cooperative, IA

2002

2003 Farmers Cooperative 

Elevator Company, NE Farmland Industries Inc., MO

2004 Agway Inc., NY

Diamond Walnut Growers Inc., CA

US Premium Beef Ltd, MO

Gold Kist Inc., GA

2005 Seald-Sweet Growers Inc., FL

CF Industries Inc., IL

FCStone Group Inc., IA

2006 Norbest Inc., UT

Allied Federated Cooperative, NY

O-AT-KA Milk Products 

Cooperative Inc., NY

2007 M & M Cooperative Inc., CO Naturipe Berry Growers Inc., CA

Central Counties Cooperative, IA Great Lakes Cooperative, IA

Sunrise Cooperative Inc., OH

Cass-Clay Creamery Inc., ND

2008 AGRI Co-op, NE Alto Dairy Cooperative, WI

Midwest Farmers Cooperative, IA

2009 Sully Cooperative Exchange, IA

Access Ag Inc., IL

Ag Vantage FS Inc., IA

The Farmers Commission 

Company, OH

Country Star Cooperative, OH

2010 Southwest Landmark Inc., OH

Progressive Ag Cooperative, IA

Frontier FS Cooperative, WI

2011 Grainland Cooperative, CO Minnesota Energy, MN

Prairie Land Cooperative, IA

Hamilton Farm Bureau 

Cooperative Inc., MI

AgriPride FS Inc., IL

2012 Shipman Elevator Company, IL

Larsen Cooperative Company, WI

Security Milk Producers 

Association, CA

2013 Agri-Partners Cooperative, WI

Husker Coop, NE

Farmers Cooperative Co., NE

Table 1—Cooperatives with over $100 million in sales that went out of business,

merged or consolidated, or became investor-owned-firms, 2000-2013
Table 2—Number, sales, assets, members, and full-time employees of cooperatives that

merged, became investor-owned-firms (IOFs), or went out of business, 2000-2013

Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 13

those that converted to, or were

acquired by, IOFs — were usually

larger cooperatives, as evidenced by the

44 cooperatives with more than $100

million in sales listed in table 1. 

Iowa was home to six of the large

cooperatives that merged, while Illinois,

Nebraska and Ohio were home to four

each. Iowa was also home to three of

the cooperatives that became IOFs, as

was California. Cooperatives that

became IOFs held about 50 percent of

the assets, while co-ops that merged

held 41 percent of the assets (table 2). 

Focusing on number of farmer or

rancher members, the picture is heavily

skewed toward cooperatives that

merged (representing 62 percent of all

members), while several of the

cooperatives that became IOFs (with 22

percent of the members) had other

cooperatives as their members, rather

than direct membership of farmers or

ranchers. 

The opposite is true for number of

employees. Cooperatives that became

IOFs often operated processing or

manufacturing operations and thus had

large numbers of employees. As a

group, these co-ops accounted for

42,006, or 69 percent, of the employees

vs. the merged co-ops, which accounted

for 24 percent of the employees. 

Fulll-time

Cooperatives Sales Assets Members employees

Number -----Billion $----- Thousand Number

Cooperative merger 539 13.899 5.489 384 14,826

IOF, acquisition 146 13.726 6.836 139 42,006

Out of business 496 2.575 1.159 97 4,240

Total 1,181 30.200 13.484 622 61,072

Number 

Cotton gins 15 4 53 72

Dairy 20 13 60 93

Fruit and vegetable 5 11 65 81

Grain and oilseed 212 35 56 303

Service 7 6 26 39

Sugar 5 6 5 16

Supply 260 42 120 422

Other1 15 29 111 155

Total 539 146 496 1,181

1 Types with less than four or more cooperatives.

Table 3—Cooperative mergers, consolidation or acquisition; cooperatives that

were acquired by or became investor-owned-firms; and cooperatives that went

out of business, by type, 2000-2013

Cooperative

merger,

consolidation

or acquisition

Investor

owned-firm

acquisition or

conversion

Cooperative

went out of

business All

continued on page 35

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Years

l l l l l l l l l l l l l l

6

5

4

3

2

1

0

Figure 1—Cooperatives that no longer exist, measured by sales, 2000-2013

No longer a cooperative (IOF)

Out of business

Combined with another cooperative

Sales, Billion $
14 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Editor’s note: This article was

provided courtesy the National Council of

Farmer Cooperatives.

Does the philosophy of

working together for

the betterment of all

still resonant with

today’s farmers? Does

the marketing concept of pooling goods

to gain a foothold in the marketplace

still create value in modern commodity

marketing? 

These ideas, and others, were put to

the test in a survey conducted for the

National Council of Farmer

Cooperatives (NCFC) to discover what

role cooperatives continue to play in the

agriculture community and, more

importantly, how co-ops can retain

their members. 

NCFC sponsored the national

survey, focusing on both large-scale

farmers (defined as producers with $2.5

million annual gross farm income or

greater) and young producers (defined

as age 45 and younger). The goal of the

survey was to help cooperatives gain an

accurate view of opportunities and

challenges facing these twogroups and

how cooperatives can bring additional

value to all members. 

The survey results show that

cooperatives are still relevant to today’s

farmers, but that challenges remain,

especially with reaching out to younger

members. 

Building lasting relationships

“We know that co-ops must build an

ongoing relationship to remain relevant

and valuable to their farmer-owners,”

says Chuck Conner, president and CEO

of NCFC. “Farmers of every size and

every age need cooperatives that will

help them remain competitive in today’s

economy. Drilling deeper into their

thoughts gives us a chance to look at

two growing segments of co-op

membership,” he adds, noting that

NCFC strives to stay abreast of

industry trends to best serve current

STAYING

RELEVANT 

Survey shows that co-ops

are still vital to members,

but more effort needed to

connect with young

producers

Ben Seaton, a recent high school graduate and all-star baseball pitcher, turned down a number

of college scholarships, preferring to work full time on his family’s farm. Tennessee Farmers

Cooperative (TFC) offers services and products that appeal to today’s producers, young and old.

Photo by Chris Villines, Courtesy TFC 
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 15

and anticipated needs of its members. 

The research shows that 71 percent

of large-scale producers currently work

with a cooperative. Of those producers,

nearly 85 percent do not believe they

will outgrow the need for that

relationship within the next five years.

Large-scale producers who work with a

cooperative are four times more likely

to expand than those who do not. 

“Our members should be proud of

the role they are playing in the business

of these expanding producers,” Conner

says. “Agriculture needs these

partnerships to support the demands of

farming.” 

Attracting and 

retaining the young

Young farmers were asked about

their perception of cooperatives and

whether they thought they would be as

involved with cooperatives as were

previous generations. The results

showed that young farmers do value the

support and services of cooperatives, yet

they did not exhibit much interest in

participating in the leadership or

sustainability of the cooperative. 

The young farmers surveyed

indicated they are embracing the future

potential of agriculture. More than 75

percent of young farmers surveyed said

they are excited about the integration of

new technologies into their farming

business. They want to increase

efficiency, engage in better marketing

and believe they are willing to take

more risks than were previous

generations. About half of young

farmers surveyed are seeking to expand

their operations. 

The challenge for cooperatives is to

encourage participation in the

cooperative by younger members and to

build succession plans for leadership

positions.

“We understand that for an

organization to be relevant and valuable

to its membership, we must be in touch

with them,” says Conner. “The

cooperative system listens and learns

from younger farmers, as well as older

ones, because cooperatives want to fit

the needs and future goals of all

producers.” 

Many NCFC member cooperatives

are exploring ways to build loyalty and

leadership skills in their membership.

Michigan Blueberry Growers (MBG

Marketing) is a cooperative

headquartered in Michigan serving

blueberry growers in eight states and

British Columbia. It is embarking on an

innovative and aggressive young

member leadership program to help fill

the pipeline with potential leaders.

“When we look at the fact that the

average age of today’s farmer is getting

close to 60, we know that we have to do

something to engage and attract

younger growers,” says Lorrie Ford

Merker, MBG’s vice president for

grower relations and cooperative affairs.

Leadership program 

getting results

Last January, MBG kicked-off a twoyear leadership immersion program for

growers ranging in age from 25 to 45.

Each applicant was either a principal

owner of a MBG-member farm or was

sponsored by a member farm. The

applicants completed an essay and

application. Twelve growers were

chosen the first year, including 10 men

and 2 women from both Michigan and

Georgia.

Throughout the past year, the

participants have traveled to the U.S.

Pacific Northwest and British Columbia

to visit farms and customers (including

a one-on-one meeting with leadership

from a large retailer). They also

observed board meetings, met with

legal and tax advisors to learn about

cooperative business structures and

attended NCFC legislative and business

conferences. This winter they will

attend a food safety summit in

California and visit with growers in that

region.

“The younger generation wants to

be engaged, but it is no longer enough

to mail them a meeting notice and

expect them to show up,” Merker says.

“We need to reach out to them,

connect them with each other and show

them how they can be a part of the

cooperative. We have invested a great

deal of resources in this program; we

believe we will have a better informed

and more engaged leadership team as a

result.”

The benefits of the MBG program

not only include building future leaders

for the cooperative, but can also can

help the industry as a whole. 

“We are hearing from the older

generation that the participants come

home energized and excited — not only

about what the cooperative is doing, but

about what is happening in the

industry,” Merker adds. “Participants

feel connected to something bigger

than their own farm. They have met

“The younger generation wants to be engaged, but it is no longer enough

to mail them a meeting notice...We need to reach out to them...and show

them how they can be a part of the co-op.”
people like themselves from all over the

country who they can now reach out to

and build relationships with.”

MBG plans to launch its second class

of young leaders in January 2016. They

will continue to call on the 2014 class to

keep them engaged as the program

evolves.

“This is not a ‘one-and-done’

program,” Merker stresses. “We plan to

keep building the program by adding 12

or so people every other year to the

original group. Those that have been

through the program will be asked to

be mentors to the next group, creating

a bigger and stronger group each year. 

Keeping pace with 

large-scale farmers

The majority of large-scale farmers

surveyed said they work with a local

cooperative to support their operation.

Of those, 54 percent have expanded

their operations. Conversely, just 31

percent of large-scale farmers who are

expanding say they do not work with a

cooperative. 

“Successful farmers understand that

cooperatives work on behalf of their

members,” Conner says. “Their co-ops

are there for them with products,

services and information to improve

agronomics, reduce risk and capitalize

on market opportunities.” 

Service is key for the large-scale

farmers who say they value the crop

inputs, commodity marketing and riskmanagement services they get from

cooperatives. Ninety percent who

belong to a cooperative said they have a

positive view of the cooperative system,

while 85 percent do not believe they

will outgrow their need to work with a

cooperative. 

These findings show that

cooperatives have been able to keep

pace with their large-scale farmers and

those with expanding operations. 

NCFC member Tennessee Farmers

Cooperative (TFC) has put in place a

number of initiatives to help farmers

incorporate new technologies. “Our

cooperatives utilize input from their

board of directors, who are all

producers,” says Bart Krisle, CEO of

TFC, a federated farm supply

cooperative system with 57 member

cooperatives. “The directors share their

personal needs and challenge the

management teams to deliver solutions.

Our cooperatives also have several field

staff positions directly with producers

to keep updated on farmer’s needs.”

TFC believes in investing in the

education and training of staff so they

can deliver the best service to the

producers. 

“We invest in education and training

for our staff on the latest technology

and realities. Then, combining input

from our producers and staff, we

incorporate the technologies that

represent the greatest opportunity to

add value for our producers,” Krisle

adds.

Members value 

co-op financial services

In addition to keeping pace with new

technologies, TFC has also introduced

new financial programs that offer

centralized accounts receivable and

input financing to its member

cooperatives. Co-op Financial Services

(CFS) is a program that allows

individual member cooperatives the

opportunity to outsource their credit

function to TFC. 

TFC sets the credit limits and

assumes the credit risk. The member

cooperatives receive cash for their open

accounts each day and remove their

credit risk. 

“CFS is beneficial to the member

cooperatives and the producers,” Krisle

adds. “Producers now have a single

credit line that can be used at any

participating member cooperative

location, simplifying the management

of their credit lines.”

In addition to the credit mechanism,

TFC employs area finance managers to

work with producers on their farms

prior to the planting season to evaluate

needs.

“This program has reduced our

cooperative system’s credit risk and

freed working capital for our member

16 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

“This is not a ‘one-and-done’ program,” Lorrie Ford Merker says of Michigan Blueberry

Cooperative’s (MBG) Young Cooperator Leadership program. Here, program participants and

leaders tour a field where new, MBG-proprietary varieties Keepsake and Sensation were

recently plated. Photo courtesy MBG 

continued on page 36
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 17

Editor’s note: This article was

provided by Naturipe Farms LLC, a

grower-owned producer and

international marketer of premium

berries. Berry production primarily

comes from multi-generation family

farms in the berry-growing regions

throughout North and South America.

The White House and United

States Department of Agriculture

honored a select few new and

beginning ranchers and farmers as

“Champions of Change” during the

Future of Agriculture two-day event

in Washington, D.C., in July. The

events celebrated agriculture leaders

from across the country who are

taking innovative approaches to

support American farming and

ranching, both now and in the future,

by showcasing their actions that

ensure and advance the future of

agriculture.

Kristin Fritz Kubiszak of

Brookside Farms, a grower for

Michigan Blueberry Growers (MBG

Marketing) — The

Blueberry People — was

one of only 15 national

honorees. Kubiszak is the

retail manager for

Brookside Farms in Paw

Paw, Mich. Her fifthgeneration family farm

distributes fresh

blueberries through

MBG’s cooperative

marketing network under

the Naturipe brand. 

After obtaining her bachelor’s

degree in social work from

Cornerstone University, Kubiszak

returned home to her family farm,

that grows and packs top-quality

blueberries. Her

involvement in the

agriculture industry

doesn’t stop with just

her family farm. She

also sits on the board of

directors for the Van

Buren County Farm

Bureau and chairs its

Promotion and

Education Committee. 

In this position, she

has dedicated her time to educating

the community with trips to local

schools, staffing the Ag Venture tent

at the local Youth Fair and other

youth and consumer education

programs. “Kristin is another

member of the Fritz family farming

operation who makes us proud that

they are part of our MBG and

Naturipe families,” says Bob Hawk,

president and CEO of MBG

Marketing.

Kubiszak’s primary goal is to

educate others not only about

agriculture, but also about how

families impact agriculture and how

important it is to continue family

farms. 

Brookside Farms started as a dairy

farm in 1876. Her grandfather

planted his first blueberry bush in

1956. That was the same year the

Kristin Fritz Kubiszak (left foreground) with family members and boxes of the “first pick” of

the 2014 season from their Michigan blueberry farm. She was recently saluted as a

“Champion of Change” by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack during a ceremony at the

White House. With them is Bob Hawk (in white shirt), CEO of the Michigan Blueberry

Growers (MBG) cooperative. Photo courtesy MBG

MBG grower honored by White House, USDA

continued on page 36
18 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

In the Spotlight 

Foremost’s Dave Fuhrmann looks back

on 40 eventful years in dairy industry 

Question: Foremost Farms is

probably best known as one of the

nation’s leading dairy co-op cheese

producers. What changes in the cheese

market do you see ahead, and how well

poised is the co-op to adapt to them? 

Answer: Per capita consumption of

cheese will contine to grow for the

foreseeable future and we’re at a place

where I think consumer tastes will

constantly evolve, leading to more

specialty cheese production. I expect

the styles of cheese will change and

increase. Foremost Farms has a great

track record of adapting, because we

have had the ability to look at the

market conditions and reinvest in our

infrastructure to meet changes. 

David Fuhrmann recently

stepped down from his position as

president of Baraboo, Wis.-based

Foremost Farms USA, a job he

began in 2001. A 40-year veteran of the dairy

industry, Fuhrmann will retire on Jan. 1. In the

interim, he is assisting in the transition to his

successor, Michael Doyle. 

Fuhrmann’s career with the cooperative

began in 1980, when he was picked to manage

barrel cheddar cheese production at the

Richland Center, Wis., facility of Wisconsin

Dairies Cooperative, one of the co-ops

that consolidated to become Foremost

Farms USA. 

In 1986, Fuhrmann was put in

charge of the cooperative’s engineering

department and in 1989 became

specialty products division manager,

working with the co-op’s ingredients

production facilities. Fuhrmann

was promoted to vice president for

manufacturing in 1993 and then to

vice president of the cheese division in

1998.

He has served on the boards of the

National Milk Producers Federation

(NMPF), the International Dairy

Foods Association and the National

Cheese Institute. Fuhrmann has also served as

chairman of the NMPF’s Federal Order Task

Force, created in 2007 to address milk pricing

issues. He was co-chair of the Dairy 2020

Council, a Wisconsin initiative to help better

position the state’s $26 billion dairy industry for

long-term viability. In 2012, Fuhrmann

received the International Dairy Foods

Association “Soaring Eagle” award. 

Fuhrmann, a graduate of the University of

Wisconsin-Stevens Point in biology, was raised

on a dairy farm in rural St. Cloud, Wis. 

“The export business and global demand make this a great time to be in the

dairy business,” says Dave Fuhrmann (third from left), former president of

Foremost Farms USA. He is seen here with employees at the co-op’s whey

ingredient plant in Plover, Wis. Photo Courtesy Foremost Farms
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 19

Q. Foremost is also the leading dairy

co-op manufacturer of whey products,

dating back to the 1980s — long before

the recent surge in that market

(especially for exports). What factors

contributed to the decision to enter the

whey market, and do you see it

continuing to grow? 

A. If you go back 30 years, whey was

a disposal problem. It’s now very clearly

a value-added business. We saw an

opportunity in the early days to capture

all of the milk solids and enhance

member returns. Will whey product

demand continue to grow? Absolutely.

There is a worldwide shortage of

protein, and that is very good for the

dairy business. In fact, whey product

consumption continues to grow globally

at a faster rate than domestic cheese

consumption. That is a concern.

Q. Have you seen a change over the

years in member commitment to doing

business through cooperatives? Does the

younger generation of dairy farmers

understand the role and need for

cooperatives?

A. I don’t see less commitment. We

have a lot of strong leaders in our

cooperative, of all ages. They are

dedicated business men and women

who happen to own a dairy marketing

cooperative. There is a significant

portion of young producers who

recognize the value that cooperatives

bring. However, it is the challenge of

cooperatives to provide value every day

to all members. 

Q. You also served as the chairman

of the NMPF’s Federal Milk Market

Order Task Force. Any experiences

from that endeavor stand out? 

A. I learned that there is no easy

answer when it comes to federal dairy

policy. People are very quick to criticize

the Federal Order system, but it is very

difficult to come up with a better

system than what’s in place. It’s even

harder to get widespread agreement.

We did make real gains for dairy

farmers with the new Farm Bill, but

Federal Order reform was ultimately

left off the table as no consensus could

be reached. 

Q. Foremost divested its fluid milk

business a few years ago. Was that

move strictly dictated by thin profit

margins in the fluid market?

A. The reality is that fluid milk is a

business that has seen a steady decline

in consumption for 40 years. Excess

plant capacity, particularly in the Upper

Midwest, combined with declining

consumption was a business without a

bright future for us. We sold the fluid

business and put the assets into cheese

and whey ingredient production and

demand for those products continues to

grow.

Q. If there were no cooperatives,

what would the impact be on dairy

farmers?

A. Cooperatives are member-owned,

and that is a much different philosophy

than other types of businesses. If there

were no cooperatives, dairy farmers

would feel a great deal of downward

pressure on milk prices. What’s more,

from a dairy policy standpoint, dairy

farmers would have significant trouble

being heard in the national farm policy

debate. Cooperatives afford the

grassroots opportunity to have that

voice. 

Q. What trend or event in recent

years gives you the most optimism

about the future of the U.S. dairy

industry? Or cause for concern?

A. The export business and global

demand for dairy products makes this a

great time to be in dairy. There will be

strong demand for dairy protein for the

foreseeable future. It is a great business

for the long-term. As I said before, the

concern is that domestic cheese

consumption keep pace with the growth

in whey ingredient demand. Also, we

continue to be challenged with price

volatility, and I expect that will

continue. The long-term future is

bright for anyone entering this

business, but volatility of pricing will

continue to cause strong price peaks

and valleys.

Q. If you could change one thing

about the dairy industry, or

cooperatives, what would it be? 

A. Cooperatives need to work

together on behalf of all dairy farmers.

Opportunities are out there for all of us

if we could set aside differences and do

better for the dairy farmers we serve.

Q. Ultimately, what accomplishments

are you proudest of during your years

with Foremost? 

A. There are two main things that

come to mind. First, Foremost Farms is

the result of a lot of hard work by dairy

farmer-members and employees who

were here long before me. I owe those

founding farmers who saw the value of

cooperation, and that spirit continues

today. In my tenure, we have evolved

from a series of small dairy plants, to

larger, state-of-the-art production

facilities with a streamlined supply

chain. I am proud that we have been

able to take costs out of our production

stream and enhance member returns

while upholding the cooperative model.

Second, I am very proud of the

employee team we have put together at

Foremost Farms USA. I am a firm

believer in the adage that you are only

as good as the members of your team.

Q. Plans for retirement?

A. I plan to travel a bit with my wife,

Sandy, and spend some quality time

with family. I might even take a ride or

two in a tractor. ■
20 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Jessica Gordon

Nembhard’s new book,

Collective Courage: A

History of African

American Cooperative Economic

Thought and Practice, was examined by

USDA rural sociologist Tom Gray in the

September-October issue of Rural

Cooperatives (available online at:

www.rurdev.usda.gov). In the following

Q&A with Gray, she provides more

background about the book and why

she undertook the project.

Gordon Nembhard is a political

economist and professor of community

justice and social economic

development in the Africana Studies

Department at John Jay College, City

University of New York. An affiliate

scholar with the Centre for the Study of

Co-operatives, University of

Saskatchewan, Canada, she is a

member of the Grassroots Economic

Organizing (GEO) Newsletter and

Collective, as well as the U.S.

Federation of Worker Cooperatives, the

Eastern Conference for Workplace

Democracy, the Southern Grassroots

Economies Project, The Federation of

Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance

Fund, the Association of Cooperative

Educators (ACE), and the U.S. Solidarity

Economy Network. 

Gordon Nembhard is also a member

of the Shared Leadership Team of

Organizing Neighborhood Equity (ONE)

DC (a community organizing

organization in Washington, D.C.). 

For more information, visit her

website at: www.geo.coop/

collectivecourage.

Finding Courage

Author discusses her research

into use of cooperatives by

African-Americans

Prior to doing research on her book, “I did not realize what a strong role AfricanAmerican women played in both the black and the wider cooperative movements,” says

Jessica Gordon Nembhard.
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 21

Question: There has been a myth

that only a few predominantly black

cooperative efforts existed historically

in the United States. Why do you think

that perception exists?

Answer: I think there are a couple of

interconnected explanations. First, it

was often dangerous for AfricanAmericans (in particular) to be involved

in alternative economics, such as

cooperatives. White competitors, the

“plantation bloc” and white

supremacists did not want AfricanAmericans to separate from the

exploitative economic relationships they

established with them as laborers and

consumers. Whites were profiting from

the exploitation. 

Black and white members of groups

like the Knights of Labor, for example,

in the 1880s had to go underground to

hide from vigilantes who would kill,

lynch and undermine their cooperative

economic and labor organizing. Many

of their efforts were also targeted with

financial sabotage in addition to the

physical violence. 

In the 1950s and 60s, the virulent

anti-communism movement similarly

targeted people and groups advocating

alternative economic strategies, ruining

their political reputations and

blacklisting them from jobs and

professional opportunities. Blacks were

often the most impacted. Groups

advocating political and civil rights felt

they would be targeted or marginalized

if they included full economic justice

and cooperatives in the demands. 

In addition, not all AfricanAmericans agreed to the cooperative

economic strategy — some still hoped

to make it in the mainstream society.

For the sake of unity, most of the civil

rights organizations publicly ignored, or

didn’t mention, cooperatives (even as

they locally and quietly supported

cooperative practices). As recently as

the 1970s, there is evidence of white

banks colluding not to give loans or a

line of credit to a black cooperative,

particularly one that was competitive

with a similar white business. 

It is partly because of these kinds of

dangers that I named the book

“Collective Courage,” because it took

all kinds of courage to persist in a

cooperative economic effort in the face

of the violence and sabotages.

In addition, because small businesses

in general are precarious and vulnerable

— and because African-American

businesses have often been targeted and

fail — many blacks have been wary of

business development, are risk-averse

and remember and talk about the

failures more than the successes. As

small businesses, cooperatives are seen

as risky and often better remembered

for their failures, so they are not

discussed or pursued. 

However, the irony is that most of

the black co-ops that “went under,” did

so because of outside sabotage and/or

because of inadequate capitalization

(often because of financial sabotage). If

the true stories were shared and the

cases analyzed, however, there would

have been better understanding of what

happened and less feelings of aversion

and shame around the idea of

cooperative businesses. 

Finally, research shows that

cooperatives have longer survival rates

than other small businesses, and that

the process of developing a cooperative

business increases financial literacy,

business and industry-specific skills,

leadership capacity, social capital and

other tangible and intangible capacities

in individual members and the

organizations involved. But these

benefits are not well known. 

Q. What surprised you the most as

you researched this topic?

A. I did not expect there to be so

much history to uncover — that

cooperatives and economic cooperation

took place in every era. I did not realize

what a strong role African-American

women played in both the black and the

wider U.S. cooperative movements. I

did not realize that the black

cooperative movement was truly a silent

partner throughout the long civil rights

movement, or that almost all the

political, civil rights and black liberation

movements and their leaders included

economic cooperation, often quietly, as

part of the strategy and/or were

involved in a cooperative enterprise in

some way from as early as the 1600s

and 1700s. I also hadn’t realized that

the U.S. labor movement and the

cooperative movement started out

together — for both blacks and whites.

Q. Can you cite an example of a coop that you found to be particularly

inspiring or that serves as an

outstanding example of an AfricanAmerican cooperative?

A. Freedom Quilting Bee, established

in 1967 in Alberta, Ala., is a handicraft

cooperative founded by women in

share-cropping families, who began

selling quilts to supplement their

families’ meager farm incomes.

Freedom Quilting Bee was a founding

member of the regional cooperative

development organization, the

Federation of Southern Cooperatives. 

In 1968, the cooperative bought 23

acres of land on which to build the

sewing plant. It sold eight lots to

families who had been evicted from

their homes and land they were

sharecropping because of their civil

rights activities. Some were evicted

from their farms, for example, for

registering to vote. 

Having the cooperative own and

control land gave members

independence and an alternative source

of land to farm, as well as a way to help

their neighbors. The 23 acres were thus

important not only to the co-op’s own

survival and growth, but also to their

families’ and communities’ survival. 

By 1992, the cooperative owned the

sewing factory, over 20 acres of land,

and owned or leased a daycare center.

They also operated an after-school

tutoring program and a summer

reading program. The women
22 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

established programs and

activities to support their

working outside of the

home and to address

needs in their

community. 

At its height (around

1992), the cooperative

had 150 members,

offered a diverse set of

sewn products, and was

the largest employer in

the town. At a time when

the political climate

severely reduced

economic options for

African-Americans in the

South, through this

cooperative women were able to assert

economic independence and augment

their family’s income, to create

alternative sustainable economic

activity, to own their own land and to

provide needed family- and communityfriendly services. 

Q. You highlight Nannie Helen

Burroughs and Halena Wilson, in

particular, as black women who played

notable roles in African-American coops. Could you say something about

why they were so distinctive?

A. This was part of my discovery that

African-American women were integral

to, and often leaders in, the black

cooperative movement. Burroughs is

also an example of a black leader who

was much better known (or only

known) for achievements in other areas.

Nannie Helen Burroughs of

Washington, D.C., was one of the

founders of the National Baptist

Women’s Convention (for which she

served as the corresponding secretary

and president for over 60 years), and

founder and CEO of the National

Training School for Women and Girls

in D.C. in 1909 (which the National

Baptist Convention and its Women’s

Convention sponsored, and is now

called the Nannie Helen Burroughs

School). She was also president of the

National Association of Wage Earners

(with Mary McCloud Bethune as vice

president). 

In 1932, she was appointed by

President Herbert Hoover to chair a

special committee on housing for

African-Americans. In the 1930s,

Burroughs also founded Cooperative

Industries of Washington, D.C. (first

called the Northeast Self-Help

Cooperative), a worker cooperative for

chair and broom making, laundry and a

cannery that morphed into a hybrid coop after winning a federal grant that

allowed the co-op to buy a farm in

Maryland and sell the produce in D.C. 

The co-op successfully put

unemployed and very-low-income

women to work, controlling their own

business. The Training School helped

to support the co-op and offered a

cooperative study class. In addition,

Burroughs was a member of the District

of Columbia Cooperative League and

was often requested by them and other

groups, such as the Joint Citizens

Committee of D.C., as an advisor and

speaker on consumer rights and

cooperatives.

Halena Wilson is an example of an

active, influential black woman whom

history has largely

overlooked. I learned

about her from Melinda

Chateavert and her book

Marching Together, about

the Ladies Auxiliary to

the Brotherhood of

Sleeping Car Porters

(BSCP). The

Brotherhood was the first

independent black union

in the 20th century. 

Halena Wilson was the

first president of the

BSCP’s Ladies Auxiliary

(1938-1956), as well as

the first president of the

active Chicago branch

(1930-1953). She was also education

director of Consumers Cooperative

Buying Club in Chicago in the late

1940s, an elected member of the

national Consumer Cooperative

Council and led the Chicago BSCP’s

Ladies’ Auxiliary in becoming a charter

member of the Cooperative Union Eye

Care Center (with the Coalition of

Trade Unions and Consumer

Cooperation in Chicago) in the 1950s. 

Wilson worked closely with the

BSCP’s founder and president, A. Philip

Randolph, especially on consumers’ and

cooperative education and the

development of brotherhood

cooperatives. She and Randolph issued

“instructions and directions” to the

chapters which urged members to

subscribe to journals/newsletters about

consumer economics and cooperatives,

as well as to study credit unions and

consumer co-ops. 

She wrote articles on cooperatives

for BSCP’s organ, The Black Worker,

and assisted the Ladies Auxiliary in

forming study groups about

cooperatives throughout BSCP chapters

in the United States and Canada. She

was a co-founder of several

cooperatives. In addition, Wilson was

called upon by the larger U.S.

The Freedom Quilting Bee, formed in 1967 by women from Alabama sharecropping families, is a particularly inspiring co-op discussed in her new book,

“Collective Courage,” says Jessica Gordon Nembhard. Here, Nettie Young, the

last surviving original member of the Gees Bend co-op, discusses her work.

Photo by Bob Gathany, courtesy Huntsville Times
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 23

cooperative movement, especially in her

home town of Chicago, to represent

black labor and black women in co-op

meetings and conference planning, coop development and at regional and

national conferences. 

For example, in the late 1940s, as the

education director of National

Cooperatives Inc., she wrote several

times to Randolph, commenting on the

importance of the BSCP’s Ladies’

Auxiliary’s input as a member, and that

these black women helped shape “the

course of a total cooperative program

for the labor communities.” 

Q. Do you think this book could help

serve to deepen interest in cooperatives

among black Americans, as well as

others? 

A. This was one of the reasons why I

wrote the book, because I want AfricanAmericans to know about this

wonderful and noble history — to

understand that we have cooperated

successfully and can cooperate. My

research uncovers the roles of black

women, as well as men, of black youth,

of black independent schools and labor

unions in the development of

cooperatives and in the cooperative

movement. 

I give examples of a variety of types

of cooperatives — consumer, worker,

agricultural, credit unions and housing

co-ops — in rural and urban settings

that were financed in a variety of ways

so that we can see that this can be done,

regardless of the conditions. I also tried

to be honest about the challenges, but

to show how black people overcame

these challenges; and to explain the

successful elements even when there

was failure. 

So, yes, I very much hope that this

book and the coverage the book is

receiving will deepen the interest in

cooperatives among African-Americans.

I want to see more cooperatives

flourishing and new cooperatives

springing up all over. These times call

for alternative strategies, and I want

more people to understand the

cooperative model and not be afraid of

it.

So far on my book tours, I have also

found that this history is inspiring

people from all different races and

ethnicities. People have been thanking

me for expanding our understanding of

cooperatives and showing the

cooperative movement from a nonEuropean perspective.

Q. Are there any areas

(geographically and/or functionally)

where you think African-Americans

could most benefit from greater

membership in co-ops? 

A. There aren’t really any specific

geographic areas that I would

recommend for African-American

cooperatives because we need them and

they have flourished everywhere — in

the South, North, West, Midwest, etc.,

and in rural and urban areas. I started

out focusing on black urban cooperative

development as a strategy to revitalize

cities. However, Melbah Smith,

formerly of the Mississippi Center for

Cooperatives and the Federation of

Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance

Fund, and others at the FSC/LAF

convinced me that rural issues and

needs for cooperatives were similar to

urban issues and needs. 

Cooperatives solve problems in all

geographies. Similarly, there is no one

function or type of cooperative or

industry that I think African-Americans

should target for cooperative

development. Again, cooperatives lend

themselves to any kind of industry, and

some kind of cooperative can address

almost any need. 

People who want to form a

cooperative should form one based on a

need or set of needs (what good or

service is lacking in some way or should

be addressed or satisfied better?)

identified by a community of people

who trust one another and want to

collectively solve a problem.

Cooperatives can be adapted to fit

almost any need, because a co-op is

based on a set of values, principles and

processes that revolve around solidarity,

equality, inclusion, return to

participation, democratic participation,

information, education and

transparency. 

Where better access to affordable

and quality financial services are

needed, for example, then start a credit

union. If the need is affordable quality

housing, then a housing cooperative

and maybe even a limited equity

housing co-op can address that. If

access to healthy, quality and affordable

food (especially fresh produce,

vegetarian foods and/or culturally

sensitive foods) is needed, then the

group should start a co-op grocery

store, etc. 

However, I am partial to worker

cooperatives because they contribute to

building economic and social justice by

directly addressing issues of

employment, meaningful work, control

over work and income, and asset

building. ■

“I want to see more cooperatives flourishing and new co-ops springing up all over. These times call for

alternative strategies, and I want more people to understand the co-op model and not be afraid of it.”
24 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

The nation’s top 18 dairy cooperatives

showed a substantial shift in their relative

performance levels during the past 20

years, a recent report shows. For the

study, cooperatives were evaluated on the

value they generated from the use of members’ equity. 

The equity retained by dairy cooperatives represents a

substantial sum of the members’ money and competes

with the capital needed for members’ farm operations.

Therefore, the retained equity should not be regarded as

free capital for the cooperative but should carry an

“opportunity cost” that reflects the value of the capital in

alternative uses. The opportunity cost is an interest

charge on the equity at a rate equivalent to the amount

the money could earn elsewhere.

If the cooperative’s net savings exceed the opportunity

cost of members’ equity, it has generated “extra value”

and enhanced the value of the equity for members.

Conversely, a cooperative has diminished the value of the

equity if it generates a negative extra value — members

bear the opportunity cost of equity capital that is not

fully recovered.

Calculating and analyzing such extra values generated

by dairy cooperatives is the approach to measuring

performance in this article. Extra value is defined as the

surplus of a cooperative’s net savings after accounting for

the opportunity cost of equity capital.

For comparing performance among cooperatives,

extra value can be made neutral to the scale and the

mode of a cooperative’s operation by expressing it as a

percentage of operating capital. The resulting extra-value

index shows the rate at which extra value was created,

using the co-op’s operating capital. 

Operating capital is the sum of non-current assets and

net working capital and, in the context of dairy

cooperatives, is a more accurate measure of a dairy

cooperative’s scale of operation than is total assets. This

is due to the way producer milk payroll is handled, which

An ‘extra value’ assessment of

the nation’s top 18 dairy co-ops,

1992-2012

Gauging Performance

Editor’s note

This article includes highlights from a forthcoming

report, “Performance of the Top 18 Dairy Co-ops,

1992-2012,” USDA Cooperative Programs Research

Report 232. The full report will soon be posted on the

USDA website at: www.rurdev.usda.gov/

BCP_Coop_LibraryOfPubs.htm.

By K. Charles Ling, Agricultural Economist
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 25

tends to inflate the current assets on the

balance sheet.

Financial information on dairy

cooperatives is from a data set

maintained by the USDA Cooperative

Programs for its annual financial

analysis of Top 100 cooperatives. The

time series of data covers three periods:

1992-1996, 2000-2004 and 2008-2012.

In the 2008-2012 period, there were 18

dairy cooperatives (or their predecessor

cooperatives) that had been

continuously on the top 100 co-ops list

since 1992. For comparing performance

over time, the data of all the

predecessor cooperatives were

combined, as if they had already been

consolidated into their respective

successor cooperatives. 

The interest rate for calculating the

opportunity cost of equity is based on

the respective year’s December average

LIBOR (London Inter-Bank Offered

Rate) for U.S. dollar loans with a 12-

month maturity. Banks generally will

extend loans to a firm with a betterthan-average credit rating at an interest

rate of about 200 basis points above the

LIBOR. 

Thus, the basic rate used to calculate

interest on equity is “LIBOR+2%.” In

addition, “basic interest rate+5%” and

“basic interest rate+10%” are also used

in the analysis to account for risk

premium of equity investment at 5 and

10 percent levels.

To avoid revealing identifiable

proprietary data, the performance of

the cooperatives is portrayed in three

ways to form a composite picture for

evaluation: performance categories,

changes in performance indexes and

performance rankings. To further

maintain proprietary data

confidentiality, the extra-value indexes

used in the evaluation for each

cooperative are 5-year averages for each

of the three study periods; these

represent the cooperative’s average level

of performance in the respective

periods. Some information is lost

because the averages gloss over intraperiod performance variations.

Performance categories

Cooperatives are placed into four

performance categories according to

average extra values generated in the

three five-year periods (table 1):

• Cooperatives that did not fully

recover the opportunity cost of equity

capital and did not generate extra

value at basic interest rate: seven

cooperatives in the first period; one

each in the second and third.

• Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capital at basic interest rate but

short of reaching 5 percent risk

premium: three cooperatives in the

first period; eight in the second; and

three in the third. 

• Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capital at basic interest rate

plus 5 percent risk premium but short

of reaching 10 percent risk premium:

two cooperatives in each of the three

periods.

• Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capital at basic interest rate

plus 10 percent risk premium: 6

cooperatives in the first period; 7 in

the second; and 12 in the third.

Eleven cooperatives in the first

period and 17 in each of the second and

third periods generated extra values

beyond the opportunity cost of equity

capital at basic interest rates

(performance Category II and higher).

Most cooperatives shifted around

different performance categories over

the three periods. However, there were

three cooperatives that remained in the

top performance category (Category

IV) throughout.

In the first period, performance

Category I had the most cooperatives,

I. Cooperatives that did not fully

recover the opportunity cost of equity

capital and did not generate extra

values at basic interest rate

II. Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capitals at basic interest rate

III. Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capitals at basic interest rate

plus 5% risk premiums

IV. Cooperatives that generated extra

values beyond the opportunity cost of

equity capitals at basic interest rate

plus 10% risk premiums

12, 13, 14, 15,

16, 17, 18

11 15

First Period

(1992–96)

Second Period

(2000-04)

Third period

Performance category (2008-12)

9, 10, 11 6, 10, 12, 13, 14,

15, 16, 17

12, 13, 16

7, 8 3, 9 5,10

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8,

18

1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7,

8, 9, 11, 14, 17,

18

Table 1—Categories of dairy cooperative performance based on average

extra values generated in the three 5-year periods
26 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

seven in total. In the second period,

performance Category II had the most,

with eight. And in the third period,

two-thirds (12) of all 18 cooperatives

were in the top performance Category

IV.

Changes in 

performance indexes

Successively lower level of interest

rates over the three study periods

presumably made achieving

continuously higher extra-value indexes

(EVIs) easier. However, only six

cooperatives improved their EVIs from

the first to the second period and then

to the third period.

Five cooperatives improved their

performance indexes from the first

period to the second, but the

performance indexes turned lower from

the second period to the third.

Conversely, the performance indexes of

another six cooperatives declined from

the first period to the second, but

improved from the second period to the

third. One cooperative’s performance

indexes declined continuously through

time.

Performance rankings

Cooperatives are ranked according to

their performance measures (EVIs) for

the three study periods. For

convenience of presentation, the 18

performance rankings are divided into

three groups of equal number, 6 each:

ranks 1 to 6 are the first ranking group,

ranks 7 to 12 are the second ranking

group, and ranks 13 to 18 are the third

ranking group (table 2, column 1).

Cooperative codes are assigned

according to a cooperative's ranking by

EVI, using the basic interest rate for

the 1992-96 period (table 2, column 2).

EVI EVI EVI EVI EVI EVI EVI EVI EVI

Rank (Basic) (Basic+5%) (Basic+10%) (Basic) (Basic+5%) (Basic+10%) (Basic) (Basic+5%) (Basic+10%)

#

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 7 17 17

3 3 3 3 7 7 8 17 7 7

4 4 4 4 5 8 7 3 3 3

5 5 6 6 8 5 4 14 14 2

6 6 5 5 4 4 5 2 2 14

7 7 7 8 9 9 18 11 11 11

8 8 8 7 18 18 9 8 8 8

9 9 9 9 3 3 3 4 4 6

10 10 10 10 14 13 6 6 6 4

11 11 12 12 17 6 13 18 18 18

12 12 11 13 13 15 15 9 9 9

13 13 13 11 16 16 16 5 5 10

14 14 15 15 6 14 17 10 10 5

15 15 16 16 10 17 10 12 12 13

16 16 14 18 15 10 14 13 16 16

17 17 18 17 12 12 12 16 13 12

18 18 17 14 11 11 11 15 15 15

Column 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1

Co-op codes are assigned according to a co-op's ranking by EVI using the basic interest rate for the 1992-96 period (column 2). Co-ops Nos. 1-6 are shaded in

green, Nos. 7-12 are in yellow, and Nos. 13-18 are in red for easier visual identification to show how co-ops shifted their relative rankings over time.

1992-1996 2000-2004 2008-2012

Table 2—Rankings by extra-value indexes (EVIs) based on the respective averages for the three 5-year periods

Cooperative standing in the ranking shown by cooperative code1
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 27

Therefore, initially, cooperatives are

grouped following the performance

ranking grouping: cooperative Nos. 1-6

are in the first ranking group (shaded in

green for easier visual identification),

cooperative Nos. 7-12 are in the second

ranking group (in yellow), and

cooperative Nos. 13-18 are in the third

ranking group (in red).

Performance ranking shows a

cooperative’s efficiency in using

operating capital to generate extra value

relative to one another, given that all

cooperatives operate in the same

economic environment and market

conditions. The rankings are

particularly useful for comparing

cooperatives that are in the same

performance category, such as for the

third period where performance

Category IV has 12 cooperatives (table

1; the same 12 top-ranked cooperatives

in table 2, column 10). The rankings of

these 12 cooperatives are very different

from their initial performance ranking

sequence.

By the end of the third study period,

performance rankings of the

cooperatives had spread out from their

original standings:

• The six initially top-ranked

cooperatives (shaded in green) saw

three of their peers remain in the first

ranking group, while two dropped to

the second ranking group and one

was further down in the third ranking

group.

• The cooperatives in the initial second

ranking group (in yellow) had one

cooperative elevated to the first

ranking group, three stayed in the

second ranking group, and two fell to

the third ranking group.

• Two of the six cooperatives that were

initially in the lowest ranking group

(in red) rose to the first ranking

group, and one moved to the second

ranking group, although three still

remained in the third ranking group. 

Structural changes

In the interim years between the first

and the second periods, 12 cooperatives

underwent structural changes to form 4

successor cooperatives, and between the

second and the third periods, 4

cooperatives underwent structural

changes to form 2 successor

cooperatives. In the period immediately

following the respective structural

changes, 4 out of the 6 successor

cooperatives actually did perform better

than the sum of their respective

predecessor counterparts. (Further

detailed analysis is necessary to

determine what factors, or what postmerger/consolidation measures the

surviving cooperatives undertook, made

the improvements possible.)

Scale of cooperatives 

and performance

For comparing the performance of

cooperatives of different scales, the

weighted averages and the simple

averages of performance indexes of

the 18 cooperatives were calculated.

The weighted averages are heavily

influenced by the performance of

larger scale cooperatives, while the

simple averages give an equal weight

to each cooperative regardless of

scale.

Comparisons between weightedaverage performance indexes and

simple averages indicate that at least

some of the larger scale cooperatives

did not perform as well as the rest of

the cooperatives in all three periods

(table 3). Some of the larger scale

cooperatives also relied more on debt

and less on equity than the rest of the

cooperatives to finance their

operations, as shown by the

differences between the weightedaverage equity shares of the operating

capital and the simple averages. But

these cannot be generalized to conclude

that larger scale dairy cooperatives

always perform better or worse than

smaller scale ones.

Summary/conclusions

Cooperatives’ performance changed

substantially over time as well as

Table 3—Performance of 18 dairy cooperatives as a group, 5-year average

extra-value indexes (EVIs) and equity share of operating capital

Period EVI EVI EVI Equity share of

(i=basic) (i=basic+5%) (i=basic+10%) operating capital

...........................................Percent................................................

Weighted Averages

1992-96 3.9 0.4 (2.9) 68

2000-04 3.2 0.5 (2.2) 54

2008-12 5.6 2.9 0.2 54

Simple Averages

1992-96 9.0 5.2 1.6 74

2000-04 9.2 5.6 1.9 73

2008-12 10.4 7.1 3.8 66

continued on page 33
Get Smart: USDA Ag 

Outlook Forum Feb. 19-20

“Smart Agriculture in the 21st

Century” is the theme of the 2015

USDA Ag Outlook Forum, being held

Feb. 19-20 at the Crystal Gateway

Marriott in Arlington, Va., just outside

Washington D.C. First held in 1923,

the Ag Outlook Forum brings together

renowned speakers including farmers,

ranchers, economists, academics,

statisticians, consultants, industry

leaders, and government policymakers. 

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom

Vilsack will present the keynote address,

followed by a distinguished guest

speaker. The economic outlook for the

coming year will be presented by

USDA Chief Economist Joseph

Glauber. In addition, a plenary panel of

industry leaders will discuss an

important topic relevant to agriculture. 

Breakout session topics on the

tentative agenda include: Perspectives

on Global and U.S. Trade; “Big Data’s”

Impact on U.S. Agriculture; Current

Commodity Situation and Outlook;

Food Price and Farm Income Outlook;

Moving Feed, Food and Fuel to

Market; Opportunities in the Bio28 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Newsline

Send co-op news items to: dan.campbell@wdc.USDA.gov

Co-op developments, coast to coast

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, right, will deliver the keynote address at the USDA Agriculture Outlook Forum in February, one of the nation’s

foremost events for discussion of agricultural and rural issues. Here, Vilsack visits Pennwood Dairy Farms in Berlin, Pa. USDA photo by Bob Nichols
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 29

Economy; Anti-Microbial Resistance;

and Bee/Pollinator Issues Facing

Agriculture. 

Other breakout session topics

include: USDA Conservation and

Regulatory Program Updates;

Environmental/Meteorologic Outlook,

Including Water Issues, Drought,

Weather Patterns and Climate Change;

Nutrition Trends and New

Opportunities for Producers; Regional

Approaches to Rural Growth; Local

Food Marketing Trends; The 100th

Anniversary of USDA Market News;

and Reducing Food Waste. 

Forum attendance records have been

regularly exceeded in recent years, and

registration this year will be capped at

1,800, so early registration is advised.

Online registrations can be made

starting in early November at:

www.usda.gov/oce/forum. That website

will also include regular program

updates and other information about

the Forum. 

USDA grants helping 

small co-ops

U.S. Agriculture Deputy Secretary

Krysta Harden in October awarded 17

grants in 12 states to help small, socially

disadvantaged agricultural producers —

including a number of co-ops and co-op

associations — expand their operations

and create jobs. 

“These grants help small producers

and other business owners who often

lack access to the capital and technical

assistance they need to grow and

prosper,” Harden says. “By providing

assistance to small and diverse

producers, USDA is expanding healthy

food options in small markets.

Additionally, many of these grants will

allow even the smallest producers to

take advantage of the latest innovations

in ag production.” 

USDA is investing $3 million

through the Small Socially

Disadvantaged Producer Grant

program. The program funds technical

assistance and other services to help

producers develop new markets and

business opportunities. 

For example, the Mississippi

Association of Cooperatives is receiving

a $200,000 grant to provide innovative

technical assistance tools, including

personal and business record-keeping,

business planning and marketing

assistance. Also in Mississippi, the Tri

County Agricultural Cooperative was

awarded a $200,000 grant to help

socially disadvantaged agricultural

producers develop diversified farms and

use production and management

strategies that will enhance their longterm viability. 

The Kohala Center Inc. in Hawaii

was awarded a $197,000 grant to

provide technical assistance to the Maui

Acquaponics Workers Cooperative, the

Palili ‘O Kohala Cooperative, the Ka’u

Coffee Growers Cooperative and the

Molokai Livestock Cooperative. 

The Alabama State Association of

Cooperatives received a $200,000 grant

to help African-American producers of

vegetable and forest products in a

number of counties. In Arizona, the San

Xavier Cooperative Association Inc.

received a $188,000 grant to provide

business planning and marketing

assistance to socially disadvantaged

producers. 

For the full list of grant recipients,

visit the “press room” section of USDA

Rural Development’s website at:

www.rurdev.usda.gov.

More dairy farms adopt 

FARM care practices

Dairy farmers nationwide continue

to demonstrate widespread adoption of

industry standards that assure highquality care for their animals, according

to a report released by the National

Milk Producers Federation (NMPF).

The summary report quantifies

practices by farmers participating in the

industry’s responsible care program,

known as the National Dairy FARM

Program (Farmers Assuring

Responsible Management). 

“The latest report shows dairy

farmers continue to demonstrate their

extensive commitment to the well-being

of the animals in their care through

adherence to the standards in the

FARM program,” says Jamie Jonker,

NMPF’s vice president of scientific and

regulatory affairs. The report quantifies

the results of more than 12,000 dairy

farm evaluations conducted during the

previous three years. All of the data is

collected by second-party evaluators

who visit each of the farms. 

Overall participation in the FARM

Program has increased to more than

three-quarters of the nation’s milk

supply, up 5 percentage points from the

previous year.

To ensure full participation in the

program, NMPF’s board recently voted

to require that each dairy marketing

organization participating in the

program must enroll all of its farmersuppliers. NMPF Chairman Randy

Mooney hailed the unanimous vote,

saying it sends a clear message that the

program must not be implemented

selectively if it is to continue

demonstrating the universal value and

integrity of the FARM program. 

“The FARM program has become

the dairy industry animal-care standard

because of its integrity, rigor and

authenticity,” Mooney says. “This

decision means each farm in a

participating cooperative will be held to

the same high standards, with no

exceptions. It demonstrates that the

nation’s dairy farms, regardless of size,

are committed to high-quality animal

care across the supply chain.” 

The report found that nearly 95

percent of farms enrolled in the
30 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

program train their employees to

properly move animals that cannot

walk; more than 98 percent train

employees to handle calves so as to

cause a minimum of stress. 

Available to all U.S. dairy farmers,

the FARM program is now in its fifth

year. Participants are given training

materials and are evaluated by a

veterinarian or another trained

professional. Evaluators provide a status

report and, if necessary, recommend

areas for improvement.

The NMPF board also has reviewed

new provisions in the FARM program

that establish a clear process to

investigate allegations of animal

mistreatment on farms enrolled in the

program. Any such farm will be subject

to an independent review and may be

temporarily suspended from the

program if the allegations are

substantiated. A corrective action plan

will be developed to address any issues.

For more information on the FARM

program, visit: http://www.national

dairyfarm.com/.

NRECA supporting 

Energize Africa Act

National Rural Electric Cooperative

Association (NRECA) CEO Jo Ann

Emerson has congratulated the U.S.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee

on the recent passage of the Energize

Africa Act, which promotes

electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The House of Representatives passed

companion legislation in May. 

The Energize Africa Act prioritizes

and coordinates U.S. government

resources to achieve three goals in subSaharan Africa by 2020:

• Promote first-time access to

electricity for at least 50 million

people in Sub-Saharan Africa;

• Encourage the installation of at least

an additional 20,000 megawatts of

electrical power, using a broad mix of

energy options to help reduce

poverty, promote sustainable

development and drive economic

growth;

• Encourage the necessary in-country

reforms to make such expansion of

power access possible.

NRECA says it stands ready to

partner with public and private

organizations to achieve these goals.

International development experts also

support this legislation, knowing how

electrification acts as a multiplier and

will ensure sustainable and successful

U.S. foreign aid investments in subSaharan Africa.

The association’s international

program — NRECA International —

has been working in developing

countries since 1962 as a collaborating

partner with the U.S. Agency for

International Development. Its global

commitment has helped provide

electricity to more than 110 million

people in 42 countries.

NRECA is the national service

organization that represents the nation’s

more than 900 private, not-for-profit,

consumer-owned electric cooperatives,

which provide service to 42 million

people in 47 states.

New solar farms 

provide ‘solar surge’

Three new utility-scale solar farms

have begun producing power in North

Carolina, racking up another 18.2

megawatts of power, equal to taking

about 2,400 passenger vehicles off the

road for a year. 

The farms — in Laurinburg,

Clarkton and Spring Hope — are home

to 60,436 solar panels and are projected

to produce 30 million kilowatt hours

annually. The three new arrays will

displace about 16,000 tons of carbon

dioxide each year, about the same as

providing electricity for 2,300 homes

for one year.

A significant portion of the

investment was managed by

Washington, D.C.-based solar

investment and financing firm Sol

Systems, which developed the project,

while National Cooperative Bank

(NCB) served as the lender. “National

Cooperative Bank has a strong

commitment to the solar industry, and

we look forward to working with Strata

Solar and Sol Systems on future

transactions,” says Matthew Wright,

senior vice president for NCB. 

Rural utility co-ops are also playing a

major role in developing solar power in

Iowa. Farmers Electric Cooperative in

southeast Iowa is adding 2,900 solar

panels to the state’s largest solar farm

near Kalona, Iowa, adding to the

region’s growing solar-power industry.

The cooperative will buy the solar

power generated by Eagle Point Solar,

which built and owns the farm. The coop is to take possession of the facility in

about 10 years. 

The solar farm will generate up to

1.1 million kilowatt hours per year, or

enough energy to power about 120

homes. Heartland Power Cooperative is

investigating options for a $1.5 million

array of 1,200 solar panels near in

north-central Iowa

Study to gauge co-op 

impact in Canadian city 

The Ontario Cooperative

Association (On Co-ops) is conducting

extensive research on the social,

economic and environmental impact of

cooperatives and credit unions within

the city of Guelph, Ontario. The sixmonth study should be completed by

this February. 

Preliminary results of the study,

“Why Co-ops Work: A SocioEconomic Impact Study of the Guelph

Co-op Sector,” show that Guelph’s coop sector includes finance, housing,

information technology, agriculture,

childcare, energy, retail, transportation,

co-op development services and student

enterprises. Guelph is a city of 120,000

people, about 100 miles west of

Toronto. 

Guelph is home to 58 cooperatives,

credit unions and co-op insurance

agency offices. These organizations

employ more than 1,500 full-time

workers and have about 7,500 members. 

Financial co-ops (which include
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 31

The nation’s 100 largest

cooperatives — including co-ops in all

sectors of the economy — had

combined revenue of $234.5 billion in

2013, up about 3.6 percent since 2012,

according to National Cooperative

Bank (NCB), which released its annual

“NCB Co-op 100” list in October. (By

contrast, USDA’s top 100 co-op list,

which appeared in the SeptemberOctober “Rural Cooperatives,” focuses

strictly on agricultural and fishery coops). 

“NCB’s report, along with our role in

educating the public about the impact

of cooperatives, are two ways the bank

can connect with the community and

showcase the economic contribution

of this business model,” says Charles

E. Snyder, president and CEO of NCB.

“We hope more co-ops celebrate their

successes and connect in the

community to share their stories.”

The top two revenue-producing coops, by economic sector, in 2013 were: 

■ Agriculture:

• CHS Inc., Saint Paul, Minn., $44.5

billion in revenue; No. 1 overall on

the NCB Co-op 100;

• Land O’ Lakes Inc., Saint Paul,

Minn., $14.2 billion; No. 2 overall.

■ Grocery:

• Wakefern Food Corp., Keasbey,

N.J., $11.5 billion; No. 4 overall; 

• Associated Wholesale Grocers

Inc., Kansas City, Kan., $8.4 billion;

No. 6 overall. 

■ Hardware & Lumber:

• ACE Hardware, Oakbrook, Ill., $3.9

billion; No. 9 overall. 

• Do It Best Corp., Fort Wayne, Ind.,

$2.7 billion; No. 14 overall. 

■ Finance: 

• Navy Federal Credit Union,

Merrifield, Va., $3.7 billion; No. 11

overall.

• CoBank, Greenwood Village, Colo.,

$2.1 billion. No. 19 overall. 

■ Healthcare:

• HealthPartners Inc., South

Bloomington, Minn., $5.2 billion;

No. 8 overall.

• Group Health Cooperative, Seattle,

Wash., $3.7 billion; No. 13 overall. 

■ Energy & Communications:

• National Cable Television

Cooperative Inc., Lenexa, Kan.,

$2.5 billion; No. 17 overall.

• Basin Electric Power Cooperative,

Bismarck, N.D., $2 billion; No. 21

overall. 

While the companies and rankings

change year to year on the list, the

cooperative sector continues to

advance, playing an increasingly

influential role in the national and

global economy, Snyder notes. 

As a long-time advocate for

cooperatives, NCB’s mission is to

provide critical financing to support the

growth and expansion of cooperative

businesses while also deploying

hundreds of millions of dollars to

support underserved communities

and cooperative expansion initiatives.

“NCB and other cooperatives named

on the NCB Co-op 100 list are

continually hard at work on getting the

message out on the advantages of

member-owned organizations,” Snyder

says. 

Co-ops provide over 2 million jobs

and create more than $75 billion in

annual wages with revenue of nearly

$650 billion, NCB notes. Although

similar to other business models, a

cooperative has several unique

features. It is owned and controlled by

its members, who have joined together

to use the cooperative’s goods,

services and facilities. 

By pooling resources, NCB says

that members can leverage their

shared power to buy, sell, market or

bargain as one group, achieving

economies of scale and sharing in any

profits generated. In addition,

communities benefit both socially and

fiscally by the cooperatives’ ability to

access and deliver goods and services

from across the nation. 

The entire NCB Co-op 100 report is

available at: www.coop100.coop or at:

www.ncb.coop. 

‘NCB Co-op 100’

revenue tops $234

billion 

Basin Electric Power Cooperative (BEPC), with $2 billion in revenue in 2013, ranked

second nationally among energy and communications co-ops, according to the NCB Top

100 co-ops list. Here, work progresses on one of the co-op’s facilities. Photo courtesy

BEPC 
32 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

credit unions and insurance co-ops)

represent about 65 percent of all jobs

related to the local co-op sector in the

city. The Guelph Technology & Design

Cluster Cooperative represents about

20 percent of the city’s information

technology jobs. 

“A community report of this

magnitude has never before been

produced,” says Peter Cameron, On

Co-op’s development manager and

coordinator of the study. “It will be

beneficial to us when speaking with

government officials on the significant

impact that cooperative businesses have

in the region. We will also be able to

establish a template for other regions to

adopt when compiling their own

localized statistics.” 

Patrie changing 

roles at CEDC 

Bill Patrie is stepping down as

executive director of the Common

Enterprise Development Corporation

(CEDC), in Mandan, N.D., effective

Dec. 31. He will continue on staff as a

senior co-op developer to serve existing

clients. 

CEDC is an economic development

corporation that focuses on assisting

cooperatives and mutually owned

enterprises in the Dakotas and

Minnesota. It also supports cooperative

educational initiatives across North

America. 

The CEDC board met in early

October for a visioning and strategy

session to discuss the future direction of

the organization and to ensure a

smooth transition in leadership. The

CEDC board has named Tyler Demars

as interim executive director, effective

Jan. 1. He is currently director of

community and cooperative

development for CEDC. The board

will conduct a search for a new

executive director. 

Patrie previously served for 16 years

as the rural development director for

the North Dakota Association of Rural

Electric Cooperatives (NDAREC) in

Mandan. While at NDAREC, Patrie

worked on more than 104 projects,

representing an investment of debt and

equity of more than $800 million. 

“Bill is the ever-present optimist. His

‘we-can-do-this’ attitude was always on

duty and display,” says Lori Capouch of

NDAREC. 

Patrie has been engaged in

development efforts for Native

American Nations involving agriculture,

energy, housing and healthcare. He has

also served as the executive director of

the North Central Regional Planning

Council in Devils Lake and as the

director of the North Dakota Economic

Development Commission during the

administration of Governor George

Sinner.

Patrie is a founding member of

CooperationWorks!, a national

organization of cooperative

development centers and practitioners.

“Bill helped create a training program

for new cooperative developers that is

now in its 10th year. Alumni of this

training program are now creating

cooperatives across the nation,” says

Audrey Malan, former executive

director of CooperationWorks! 

A natural storyteller, Patrie is the

author of “Creating Co-op Fever: A

Rural Developer’s Guide to Forming

Cooperatives,” a USDA publication on

starting cooperatives. He also

published “100 Stories of Hope” in

2005. This book is based on his 100

interviews of those living in poverty.

Patrie is also a frequent contributor to

“Rural Cooperatives” magaziune.

He has received a number of awards

for his contribution to cooperatives

including the Honored Cooperator

Award from the National Cooperative

Business Association, the National

Farmers Union’s Cooperative Service

Award, and the John Logue ACE Award

presented by the Association of

Cooperative Educators.

Co-op Foundation grants

support education 

The Cooperative Foundation is

awarding nearly $45,000 in grants to

support 13 cooperative education

projects. The foundation’s mission is to

expand and enhance cooperatives

Bill Patrie
through research, teaching, extension,

innovation and development.

The two largest grants were: 

• $7,300 to ROC USA to help

community-resident leaders of

cooperatively owned manufactured

home parks attend the

NeighborWorks Community

Leadership Institute.

• $7,500 to the University of Wisconsin

Center for Cooperatives to develop a

set of online financial tools for use in

member education, board training and

new cooperative development.

The foundation also revised its grantmaking guidelines to provide better

guidance to applicants and announced a

new social investment initiative. 

Hoop house 

construction guide available

Steve Upson, a Noble Foundation

horticulture consultant, has authored

The Noble Foundation High Tunnel Hoop

House Construction Guide, which draws

on Upson’s 17 years of experience

designing, constructing and using hoop

houses (a type of unheated greenhouse

that uses plastic sheeting). The

publication contains a detailed review of

the various models of permanent and

moveable hoop houses, as well as

traditional and novel building materials

and methods used in construction.

Many small, local food co-ops are

using hoop houses to expand their

growing seasons. 

In the past, Upson says he had been

hesitant to produce a construction guide

because hoop house design and

construction techniques have constantly

evolved during the past 20 years.

However, with few detailed publications

on hoop house construction being

available, he set forth to develop a

resource to meet the need.

“My intent was not to offer a

complete set of construction plans for

any particular type or size of hoop

house,” Upson says, “but rather to

introduce novice growers

and hoop house builders to

the various tools and

techniques used in

constructing a wide range of

hoop house models. 

“Admittedly, my

experience with hoop house

structures has a Southern

flavor,” Upson says.

“Therefore, the guidelines

may, or may not, have

application in other regions

of the country. However,

careful study of this

publication prior to

purchasing a hoop house kit

or materials to custom-build

a structure will save the

builder time, money and

frustration.”

The 96-page, full-color

publication is accessible on

the Noble Foundation

website at: www.noble.org/

ag/horticulture/hoop-houseconstruction-guide. ■

Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 33

relative to one another, reflecting the

challenges of operating in the dynamic

dairy industry over the past two

decades. 

Performance did improve for the

majority of the surviving cooperatives

of mergers and consolidations, at least

initially. In the time periods under

consideration, larger was not

necessarily better, as at least some of

the larger scale cooperatives did not

perform as well as the rest of the

cooperatives. To finance their

operations, some of the larger scale

cooperatives also relied more on debt

and less on equity than the rest of the

cooperatives. 

Some words of caution are in order

regarding measuring cooperative

performance. A cooperative is a

membership organization as well as a

business entity. It has to achieve its

business goals but also has to satisfy its

members’ objectives. Besides expecting

good returns by marketing milk

through the cooperative, dairy farmers

also look to the cooperative to provide

many other services to help sustain

their farming operations. The benefits

of providing such member services may

not be fully measurable and thus may

not be fully reflected in the financial

statements.

The board and members should be

cognizant of the value of such benefits,

in addition to financial returns, when

evaluating their cooperative’s

performance. They should also take

their cooperative’s pricing policies into

consideration, because the distinction

between a cooperative’s milk pay prices

and net savings is not clear-cut. In the

end, there is no substitute for a wellinformed membership and a vigilant

board that understands the complexity

of operating a cooperative to

adequately oversee its operations and

satisfy members’ expectations. ■

Gauging Performance

continued from page 27

This guide may prove helpful to the many local food co-op

members who are using hoop houses to extend their growing

seasons.
34 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

sustainable over the long term. 

“The largest use of the VAPG funds

will be to develop systems that will let

us consistently replicate our products

and our operational systems, so that

our products will be consistent and our

business model will be sustainable,”

says Bee Tolman, one of the co-op’s

original organizers and current

director. This will include establishing

systems for recipe development and

documentation, standard operating

procedures and inventory management,

customer and sales database

management, staff training practices

and development of an employee

handbook. 

“Butchers are scarce, particularly if whole-animal

utilization and craft butchery is required,” Tolman says. “So

our best means of securing a skilled butchery team is to train

in-house. Thus, the second-largest use of the VAPG will be

for training junior staff in the arts of butchery, starting with

primary fabrication, but moving into seam butchery, craft

butchery and charcuterie. The third, and smallest, use of the

funds will be for marketing efforts, ranging from getting our

logos out into the marketplace, to in-store demonstrations

and sampling events.”

In addition to the retail trade, the co-op has about half a

dozen small wholesale accounts and would eventually like to

open a second store, Rhoads says. The co-op operates a CSA

(community supported agriculture) service that makes

monthly deliveries of frozen local meat to subscribers. The

CSA may be expanded in the future to include twice-monthly

or weekly deliveries.

Members share 

passion for ‘local’ 

The producer-members of Side Hill Farmers Co-op

reflect the face of the burgeoning local foods movement. 

Among the founding members of the co-op are Paul and

Cindy O’Mara. Until the mid-1980s, they were primarily

commercial vegetable growers in Madison County, east of

Syracuse, selling most of their veggies to Birds Eye. But

when the local Birds Eye plant closed, it nearly took down

their farm with it.

While the O’Maras also grew grain, the sudden loss of

their primary vegetable market hit the farm hard. “That first

year without the vegetable production, income was tough —

we had to do side jobs to buy

groceries,” Paul O’Mara recalls. 

So the O’Maras diversified. They

started growing alfalfa, hay and corn

silage for dairy farmers around them.

Because their rented land was better

suited to grazing than crop production,

“we diversified some more and added

some beef cows,” O’Mara says. 

The beef operation has grown into

a 60-head herd today for the O’Maras,

who also farm with their sons, Scott

and Ryan. Their guiding philosophy,

Paul says, is that: “People should know

where the cows are raised, how they’re

taken care of and that they’re raised by

somebody who cares. To me, it’s

important to know where our food

comes from, otherwise there’s no

guarantee of its quality.”

NY farmland more 

affordable for Ohioans 

Daniel and Joanna Kline are also producers whose animals

are marketed through the Side Hill Farmers butcher shop.

They moved from Ohio eight years ago to start Ingallside

Meadows Farm in Perryville, Madison County. “To buy a

farm in Ohio required a lot of cash — generally between

$10,000 and $20,000 per acre,” Daniel Kline explains. “Land

prices push some people out.” 

The Klines wanted to farm and direct-market their

products to the local community. “We chose Madison

County because of the small farms, the rolling hills and

particularly the Honeoye loam soil and the climate. Because

of the ‘lake effect,’ there aren’t many actual droughts here,

not like they have in Ohio,” he says.

The Klines pasture-raise their chickens, pigs, beef cattle

and turkeys. Chicks are started in a chicken house but are

soon moved to a hoop house out on pasture. The chickens

receive fresh pasture every day and are fed non-GMO

(genetically modified) grains and organic minerals. “But

there’s no substitute for the natural thing — we can’t

substitute what they can get in the grass,” says Kline. 

On the Klines’ diversified, “polycultural” farm, the various

species all complement each other on pasture. The horses eat

what the cows don’t, then the chickens follow and scratch

everything apart to eliminate fly problems. 

“We wanted a connection to the land — to be good stewards

of the land,” Kline says. “I see the land improving here, and

we’ll leave it better for the next generation.”

For more information, visit the co-op’s website at:

www.sidehill farmers.com, or visit the retail shop’s facebook

page at: Facebook/side hill farmers. ■

Value-added corner

continued from page 6

It is difficult to find well-trained “craft”

butchers, so the co-op is using a USDA grant to

help train new butchers.
Of the 539 cooperatives that merged,

consolidated or were acquired by

another cooperative, 53 no longer exist.

Ten of the 53 cooperatives had become

IOFs by 2013 while 43 merged yet

again with another cooperative and thus

no longer exist under the prior name. 

Multiple merger cooperatives

Another 44 cooperatives were

involved in multiple mergers with other

cooperatives. These 44 co-ops each

represented the merger of three or

more co-ops — accounting for a total

of 246 cooperative mergers. The

number of mergers for these 44 co-ops

ranged from 3 to 53 mergers, with a

median of 4 mergers per cooperative.

The multiple-merger cooperatives

accounted for $7.5 billion of the $13.9

billion in sales of cooperatives that

merged. 

Regional cooperatives have interstate sales and, as such, are generally

larger than local cooperatives with only

intra-state sales. Regional cooperatives

that were involved in more than 3

mergers acquired a total of 70

cooperatives, representing $2.3 billion

in sales (31 percent of the $7.5 billion

sales total). Included in this merger

group are 8 cooperatives that had more

than $100 million in sales. Regional

cooperatives acquired from 4 to 53

cooperatives.

Local cooperatives that were

involved in more than 3 mergers

acquired 176 cooperatives with a

combined $5.2 billion in sales (69

percent of the $7.5 billion total sales).

Local cooperatives in this group

merged with 9 other cooperatives that

had more than $100 billion in sales.

The number of cooperatives acquired

ranged from 4 to 9 cooperatives.

Merger by co-op type and state

Tables 3 and 4 show co-ops that

ceased operations, based on type of coop and their home state. Any states or

co-op types that represented less than

four co-ops were eliminated from the

table. 

Focusing on co-ops types, farm

supply and grain/oilseed cooperatives

dominated, as would be expected since

they are by far the most numerous type

of cooperative in USDA’s database.

Supply cooperatives comprise 40

percent of the overall co-op database

and 36 percent of the cooperatives that

ceased operations. Grain and oilseed

co-ops comprised 22 percent of all coops and 26 percent of those that ceased

operations during our survey time

period (table 3).

By state, North Dakota and

Minnesota had the most cooperatives

that ceased operations (8 percent), while

they are home to 7 percent and 9

percent (respectively) of all ag

cooperatives. Iowa and Texas ranked

next, accounting for 7 percent of the

cooperatives that ceased operations and

4 percent and 8 percent (respectively) of

all ag cooperatives. 

Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota

had the most cooperatives that merged,

consolidated or were acquired by other

cooperatives, with at least 50 from each

state.

Farm growth fuels 

co-op growth 

USDA’s Census of Agriculture shows

that average per-farm sales of $47,424

Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 35

Number 

Alaska 0 0 5 5

Alabama 7 0 7 14

Arkansas 4 5 10 19

California 9 14 41 64

Iowa 64 4 17 85

Illinois 45 8 9 62

Kansas 31 7 6 44

Maine 0 0 5 5

Minnesota 56 16 23 95

Missouri 4 7 7 18

Montana 10 4 9 23

North Dakota 53 15 31 99

New York 9 5 32 46

South Dakota 38 4 9 51

Tennessee 14 0 4 18

Texas 17 11 50 78

Wisconsin 42 6 24 72

Other States1 136 40 207 383

Total 539 146 496 1,181

1

States with less than four or more cooperatives.

Table 4—Cooperative mergers, consolidation or acquisition; cooperatives that

were acquired by or became investor-owned-firms; and cooperatives that went

out of business, by State, 2000-2013

Cooperative

merger,

consolidation

or acquisition

Investor

owned-firm

acquisition or

conversion

Cooperative

went out of

business All

Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions,

2000-2013

continued from page 13

continued on page 36
36 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

family joined Michigan Blueberry

Growers Association, a grower-owned

cooperative, and the year Kubiszak’s

father, Bill Fritz, was born. 

Like his farming predecessors, Fritz

has continued the family tradition of

active agricultural leadership by serving

on the boards of both MBG Marketing

and Naturipe Farms, of which MBG is

an owner/partner. “We were absolutely

delighted when we learned that Kristin

was selected for this program” says

Fritz. “She is a wonderful

representative of the next generation

that has the desire and drive to

continue our commitment to family

farming and the broader agricultural

community.”

Kubiszak and the other honorees

were congratulated by Secretary of

Agriculture Tom Vilsack and

recognized at a ceremony in the White

House by Deputy Secretary of

Agriculture Krysta Harden and

Assistant to the President and Director

of the Domestic Policy Council Cecilia

Munoz. They were given a tour of the

First Lady’s Garden at The White

House by Sam Kass, President Barack

Obama’s senior policy advisor for

nutrition policy and the executive

director of the Let’s Move program. 

“It was a true privilege to represent

the blueberry industry as a Champion

of Change,” Kubiszak says. “Since we

grow blueberries, which are known for

their great flavor and incredible health

attributes, I was especially pleased to

learn first-hand about some of the

efforts by the First Lady to encourage

children to eat a healthy, brighter array

of fresh fruits and vegetables. It was

great to share the story of our family

blueberry farm. It has always been a

passion of mine to educate others about

what we do, and this was another great

opportunity.”

To learn more about “Champions of

Change” visit: http://www.whitehouse.

gov/champions. For more information

about Naturipe, visit: www.naturipe

farms.com or https://www.facebook.co

m/Naturipe. ■

MBG grower honored by White House, USDA

continued from page 17

in 1978 grew to $187,097 in 2012, an

annual growth rate of more than 11

percent. That’s almost double the rate

of inflation experienced in the

consumer price index during that

period. Farms have increased in size,

sales and complexity, and their owners

have supported the corresponding

growth of their cooperatives. 

Cooperatives are owned by their

farmer members and, as such, will

continue to operate to serve their

members’ changing needs. Farmer coops that continue to thrive do so

because they have been ready to add the

products, services and markets that

their members desire. 

Growth in cooperative size will likely

continue as co-ops position themselves

to better compete with both investorowned firms and other cooperatives.

The fastest way to grow a cooperative,

or any business, is through merger,

consolidation or acquisition. 

One of the most recent cooperative

mergers occurred in September in

Nebraska when Central Valley Ag

Cooperative in O’Neill merged with

United Farmers Cooperative in York.

According to a press release, this

merger provides “opportunity for

expanded services and facilities,

increased savings and accelerated equity

redemptions for the benefit of our

member-owners. [The cooperative]

also expects to be able to attract and

retain the best employees to provide

world-class service for every customer.” 

As of today, this larger cooperative

would rank number 20 on USDA’s top

100 cooperative list. At least two-thirds

of the memberships of each co-op voted

to “grow” this business — which they

own and control through their elected

directors. Similar economics and

member needs can be expected to drive

other cooperative mergers in the years

ahead. ■

Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions, 2000-2013

continued from page 35

cooperative retail stores,” Krisle says.

“This is one example of how we look to

meet the changing needs of our

member cooperatives and the

producers.” 

Regulation concerns 

Large-scale farmers say government

regulations are as important to them as

commodity prices and input costs.

Specifically, they are concerned about

the lack of understanding about

agriculture among consumers and

policymakers. 

According to the research, 50

percent of large-scale farmers look to

cooperatives as a source of information

regarding regulations. 

“Farmers appreciate the fact that

their cooperatives are educating

policymakers about the science of

today’s agriculture,” Conner says,

“because they are hopeful that better

understanding leads to policy that is

practical to implement and effective in

achieving a beneficial outcome.” ■

Staying relevant

continued from page 16
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 37

2014 Article Index

Information appearing in Rural Cooperatives magazine during calendar

year 2014 has been indexed to help you find past articles. Articles are

indexed by issue and page. Back issues can be found online at: 

http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/BCP_Coop_RurCoopMag.html

TITLE FEATURES ............................................................................................ISSUE / PAGE

Back from the Brink

Grocery co-op conversion prevents food desert in rural Wisconsin ..............Sept./Oct. 23

Building Success on Service

Expanded agronomy service enhances value of Texas co-op for 

cotton and grain producers .................................................................................May/June 4

Celebrating Community

Whitley Country Farmers’ Market marks seven years of steady growth .......Sept./Oct. 19

Clean Energy Co-op promotes solar energy in Pennsylvania ..............................Sept./Oct.18

Collective Courage

New book relates history of African-American cooperation............................Sept./Oct. 32

Consultant Donald Senechal remembered as a major force for co-op 

development ......................................................................................................Sept./ Oct.31

Co-ops = Community Development 

Cooperative developers share ideas in Minneapolis...........................................Jan./Feb. 18

Co-ops: leadership with a difference

Consensus is the goal, but can be a long process ................................................July/Aug. 8

Co-ops urged to observe Grain Bin Safety Week ..................................................Jan./Feb. 29

Dairy co-ops’ milk volume up, but market share down slightly ......................March/April 27

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve viability 

of small farmers ..................................................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Farmers, processors work together to boost Egypt’s tomato industry .............March/April 30

Finding Courage: Author discusses her research into 

African-American co-ops....................................................................................Nov-Dec. 20 

Grain, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and income records .......................Sept./Oct. 4

From the Ashes of War

Rebuilding ag co-op system in Bosnia and Herzegovina 

presents huge challenges ...................................................................................Sept./Oct. 36

A ‘Human Soul on Fire with Great Cause’

William Hirth’s iron-forged will and vision were essential to 

the formation of MFA. ......................................................................................May/June 24

Investing in your co-op’s future 

Key finance, marketing issues examined during Farmer 

Co-ops Conference..............................................................................................Jan./Feb. 10

The Long Run

Number of ag co-ops celebrating 100th anniversaries on the rise ..................May/June 18

Making the Co-op Connection..............................................................................Sept./Oct. 18

The Missing Piece

Why women farmers are key to global food security .......................................July/Aug. 26

Mothers’ Milk Co-op

Co-op provides critical help for premature babies while 

generating income for moms .......................................................Sept./Oct. 28July/Aug. 30
38 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops in ag, 

utilities and health-care sectors ......................................................Mach/April 22

On the Road with Youth TCI

Peer-to-peer training program helps young people 

pursue co-op dreams .............................................................................Sept./Oct.27

Our First Year As a Co-op

Worker-owned food processor shares lessons learned 

since converting to a co-op ..................................................................July/Aug. 30

The Precision Decision

Farm supply co-ops help members adopt precision 

ag technology to boost productivity .................................................March/April 8

The Privileges of Membership

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate

the ‘co-op difference’ ...........................................................................July/Aug. 10

Ready-Made Communities

Manufactured housing co-ops offer affordability, stability 

and security .............................................................................................Oct./Sept.22

Remembering the ‘Badlands’ Report ........................................................May/June 30

The Right Blend

Fifth Season’s vegetable mixes help scale-up Wisc. 

farm-to-school marketing program.....................................................May/June 12

The Ripple Effect 

Co-op uses USDA-funded program to improve 

education for Pakistani girls. .............................................................March/April 4

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through 

own retail outlet ........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 5

Sheets, Hamon, Geans named top co-op communicators .....................July/Aug. 22

Soup’s On!

Stone Soup Farm Co-op part of worker-owned farm trend ...........Sept./Oct. 24

Top 100 ag co-ops’ sales soar 9 percent over 2012 ..................................Sept./Oct. 8

‘A Trend, Not a Fad’

Growing markets for local foods examined 

during Ag Outlook Forum...................................................................March/April 14

Turning solitude into solidarity

Montana Midwives Co-op helping to improve conditions

for workers and clients ........................................................................Sept./Oct. 30

Twin Cities Co-op

Local food system study finds success factors ...............................Sept./Oct. 26

A Two-Way Street 

Members must fulfill responsibilities to their co-op............................July/Aug. 4

Welcome to the Club! 

Food buying club co-ops have potential to help increase 

food security for many ...........................................................................Jan./Feb. 24

What leads to satisfied co-op members? 

Surveys of dairy farmers show management and 

pricing are key .........................................................................................Jan./Feb. 20

What We’ve Learned So Far 

Food hub operators share insights needed for 

business success ...................................................................................July/Aug. 14

Your Guide to the New Farm Bill ...............................................................May/June 35

MAGAZINE DEPARTMENTS

COMMENTARY

Ag co-ops remain strong ...............................................................................Jan./Sept. 2

Farm Bill boosts co-op development .....................................................March/April .2

Farm Credit partners with USDA to strengthen rural America .............May/June. 2

Local food investments expand market opportunities..............................July./Aug. 2

National Cooperative Month, October 2014................................................Sept./Oct. 2

Co-ops: an extension of your farm business – or your 

other business? .........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 2

CO-OP DEVELOPMENT ACTION

Maine island community creates worker-owned co-op to 

retain local businesses, jobs ................................................................July/Aug. 20

Making the Co-op Connection .....................................................................Sept-Oct 18. 

CO-OPS & COMMUNITY

Coming Home – Skills learned in the military often transfer 

to the rural workforce ...........................................................................May/June 28

Putting skills to work ...................................................................................May/June 29

Portion of co-op’s livestock sales earmarked to support 

FFA, 4-H ................................................................................................March/April 12

Restoring a Living Landmark ........................................................................Jan./Feb. 16

Scholarships help students ‘follow their dreams’ ...............................March/April 12

FOCUS ON

Bahati Mamas Cooperative

Somalia women refugees form co-op to market 

produce from small farm ..................................................................March/April 20

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Jerry Kozak: Life Lessons .............................................................................Jan./Feb. 15

Foremost’s Dave Fuhrmann looks back on 40 eventful 

years in dairy industry............................................................................Nov./Dec. 18

NEWSLINE

Ocean Spray sales top $1.6 billion ..............................................................Jan./Feb. 30

USDA Ag Outlook Forum Feb. 20-21 

NCB financing autism, elder care organizations

$70 million to promote economic growth in Africa

Texas Tractor Drive helps feed hungry

Co-op leaders honored by Co-op Network

ACE conference slated for Austin in July

Four co-ops win dotCoop Awards

Florida’s Natural makes co-op’s third-highest payout

Foremost earns Green Professional designation

NOVEC distributes more green energy 

Co-op merger creates Prairieland FS

Co-op educator Ian MacPherson dies

Land O’Lakes Inc. acquires Geosys

C-FARE launches national co-op education project

Dairylea members approve DFA merger ..............................................March/April 33

Organic Valley sales hit $928 Million

CHS earns $992.4 million on record $44.5 billion sales

Aurora Co-op, CHS building shuttle loader in Nebraska

Fenner to succeed Taylor at MFA Oil

NCB commits $379 million to serve low-income communities

Brenner new CEO of Countryside Co-op

Land O’Lakes’ record year yields 30 percent boost in cash to members

Polidoro succeeds Leonard at ACDI/VOCA

Frontier Cooperative, Husker Co-op merge

Leslie Mead to lead CDF

CDI expands product portfolio

Record sales, patronage for United Farmers

Co-op communicators to meet in Pittsburgh

Kirkpatrick saluted for dairy vision

Two co-ops share wind energy honors ....................................................May/June 36

AMPI reports $1.8 billion in sales

Farmer Co-op Conference Nov. 6-7

USDA investing $7.8 million for local food enterprises

CDF grant helps in typhoon recovery

USDA supporting food hub development 

DFA sales hit $12.8 billion

Dakota food co-op finds strong support

MMPA sales nearing $1 billion

Turkish delegates studying U.S. co-ops

NCB backing solar power projects 

Arkansas ag co-ops pursue merger

Oregon co-op markets GMO-free cherries

Co-op using USDA loan to create new jobs in forest products

Trupointe Co-op opens Indiana facility

GROWMARK names Spradlin new CEO ....................................................July/Aug. 33

Agreement to boost Kenya’s co-op sector

Alpaca herd rescue shows need for education

I Love My Farmers Market celebration

Co-op promotes SweetTango Apples

Illinois grain co-op to merge with CHS

Diglio new GM at Michigan Milk

USDA investments help grow rural businesses

Second Harvest opens distribution center

Iowa co-op producing cellulosic ethanol

USDA funding supports bioenergy research

Nebraska co-ops to merge

Policinski honored as ‘Master Entrepreneur’
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 39

CoBank/USDA Partnership to build rural infrastructure .......................Sept./Oct. 37

USDA helps butterfly farming take wing

More co-ops for the ‘century club’

Ag Law Center receives USDA grant

Southern States allies with Kentucky Equine Research

Growmark reports record sales

Michael Doyle new CEO of Foremost Farms

USDA’s Catherine Woteki to address Farmer Co-op Conf.

Sunkist moves headquarters to Valencia

Dairy safety-net program caps 5-year effort

Foremost, MMPA form strategic alliance

Alaskan food co-op wins Startup of the Year

International Co-op Summit in Quebec

Get Smart: USDA Ag Outlook Forum ..........................................................Nov./Dec. 31

USDA grants helping small co-ops

More dairy farmers adopt FARM care practices

Hoop house construction guide available

NRECA supporting Energize Africa Act

‘NCB Co-op 100’ revenue tops $234 billion

Study to gauge co-op impact in Canadian city

Patrie changing roles at CEDC

Co-op Foundation grants support education

New solar farms provide ‘solar surge’

UTILITY CO-OP CONNECTION

Carolina co-op uses USDA loan to help members 

conserve energy ................................................................................March/April 11

USDA works with co-ops on $250 million energy-efficiency 

effort ............................................................................................................Jan./Feb. 8

VALUE ADDED CORNER

Aronia berry co-op among recipients of $25 million in USDA 

value-added grants...................................................................................Nov./Dec. 4

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through own 

retail outlet .................................................................................................Nov./Dec. 5

SUBJECTS

Communications/ Public Relations

Co-op career of accomplishment................................................................July/Aug. 22

Co-op communicators to meet in Pittsburgh........................................March/April 35

The Privileges of Membership 

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate 

the ‘co-op difference’.........................................................................July/August 10

Sheets, Hamon, Geans named top co-op communicators .....................July/Aug. 22

Community

Coming Home 

Skills learned in the military often transfer to the 

rural workforce ......................................................................................May/June 28

Portion of co-op’s livestock sales earmarked to 

support FFA, 4-H..................................................................................March/April 12

Restoring a Living Landmark.........................................................................Jan./Feb. 16

Scholarships help students ‘follow their dreams’ ...............................March/April 12

The Privileges of Membership

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate 

the ‘co-op difference’ .............................................................................July/Aug. 10

Conferences/Meetings

Changing ownership structure ....................................................................Jan./Feb. 11

Cooperatives developers share ideas in Minneapolis.............................Jan./Feb. 18

The Co-op Connection: How does your co-op connect?

Much to celebrate, but much more to do.............................................Nov./Dec. 8

The long view of a changing world ............................................................Jan./Feb. 13

Investing In Your Co-op’s Future

Key finance, marketing issues examined during 

Farmer Co-ops Conference ....................................................................Jan./Feb. 10

Co-op Development

Bahati Mamas Cooperative 

Somali women refugees form co-op to market 

produce from small farm .................................................................March/April 20

Back from the Brink

Grocery co-op conversion prevents food 

desert in rural Wisconsin .......................................................................Sept./Oct.23

Celebrating Community

Whitley County Farmers’ Market marks seven 

years of steady growth ...........................................................................Sept./Oct.19

Clean Energy, Co-op promotes solar energy in 

Pennsylvania.............................................................................................Sept./Oct.18

Collective Courage

New book relates history of African-American 

cooperation..............................................................................................Sept./Oct. 32

Consultant Donald Senechal remembered as a major 

force for co-op development................................................................Sept./Oct. 31

Cooperative developers share ideas in Minneapolis...............................Jan./Feb. 18

Farm Bill boosts co-op development........................................................March/April 2

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve 

viability of small farmers.........................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Farmers, processors work together to boost Egypt’s 

tomato industry .................................................................................March/April 30

Farmers work together to meet common needs.......................................Sept./Oct.25

From the Ashes of War

Rebuilding ag co-op system in Bosnia and Herzegovina 

presents huge challenges.....................................................................Sept./Oct. 36

Maine island community creates worker-owned co-op to 

retain local businesses, jobs ..................................................................July/Aug.20

Mothers’ Milk Co-op .....................................................................................Sept./Oct. 28

Ready-Made Communities

Manufactured housing co-ops offer affordability, 

stability and security ...............................................................................Sept./Oct.22

Remembering the ‘Badlands’ Report 

Thoughts about co-ops in North America .........................................May/June 30

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through 

own retail outlet ........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 5

Soup’s On!

Stone Soup Farm Co-op part of worker-owned farm trend..............Sept./Oct.24

The Missing Piece

Why women farmers are key to global food security.......................July/Aug. 26

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops in 

ag, utilities and health-care sector ...............................................March/April 22

The Ripple Effect

Co-op uses USDA-funded program to improve 

education for Pakistani girls ...............................................................March/April 4

Turning solitude into solidarity ....................................................................Sept./Oct. 30

USDA supports co-op development of small and 

mid-sized farmers...................................................................................May/June 37

Welcome to the Club!

Food buying club co-ops have potential to help 

increase food security for many............................................................Jan./Feb. 24

Co-op Month

National Cooperative Month proclamation.................................................Sept./Oct. 2

Co-op Month Special Section

Making the Co-op Connection..............................................................Sept./Oct. 18

The Co-op Connection: How does your co-op connect?

Much to celebrate, but much more to do.............................................Nov./Dec. 8

Co-op Principles/Advantages/Impact

A Two-Way Street

Members must fulfill responsibilities to their co-op............................July/Aug. 4

Cooperative Principles.....................................................................................Jan./Feb. 7

Emergence of food hubs..................................................................................Jan./Feb. 5

Food hubs: an evolution of the co-op business model...............................Jan./Feb. 7

Remembering the ‘Badlands’ Report 

Thoughts about co-ops in North America .........................................May/June 30

The Co-op Advantage....................................................................................July/Aug. 11

The Privileges of Membership

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate 

the ‘co-op difference’ .............................................................................July/Aug. 10

Dairy

Dairy co-ops’ milk volume up, but market share 

down slightly ......................................................................................March/April 27
40 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Foremost’s Dave Fuhrmann looks back on 40 

eventful years in dairy industry ............................................................Nov./Dec. 18

Gauging Performance 

An ‘extra value’ assessment of the nation’s top 18 dairy 

co-ops, 1992-2012....................................................................................Nov./Dec. 24

Kirkpatrick saluted for dairy vision .......................................................March/April 39

Jerry Kozak: Life Lessons..............................................................................Jan./Feb. 15

What leads to satisfied co-op members?

Surveys of dairy farmers show management and 

pricing are key..........................................................................................Jan./Feb. 20

Education

Co-ops urged to observe Grain Bin Safety Week .....................................Jan./Feb. 29

The Co-op Connection: How does your co-op connect?

Much to celebrate, but much more to do.............................................Nov./Dec. 8

Finding Courage

Author discusses her research into use of cooperatives 

by African-American ..............................................................................Nov./Dec. 20

Scholarships help students ‘follow their dreams’ ...............................March/April 12

The long view of a changing world ............................................................Jan./Feb. 13

The Privileges of Membership

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate 

the ‘co-op difference’ .............................................................................July/Aug. 10

On the Road with Youth TCI .........................................................................Sept./Oct. 27

Portion of co-op’s livestock sales earmarked to 

support FFA, 4-H..................................................................................March/April 12

Staying Relevant

Survey shows that co-ops still vital to members, 

but more effort needed to connect with young producers ............Nov./Dec. 14

Environment/Energy

Carolina co-op uses USDA loan to help members 

conserve energy .................................................................................March/April 11

Clean Energy Co-op promotes solar energy in Pennsylvania.................Sept./Oct.18

Foremost earns Green Professional designation......................................Jan./Feb. 33

Leveraging with other USDA programs .......................................................Jan./Feb. 9

USDA works with co-ops on $250-million, energy-efficiency effort........Jan./Feb. 8

Farmers Markets

Celebrating Community

Whitley County Farmers’ Market marks seven years 

of steady growth ......................................................................................Sept./Oct.19

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve viability 

of small farmers........................................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Farm Supply and Services

3 IN A ROW!

Grain, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and 

income records .........................................................................................Sept./Oct. 4

A ‘Human Soul on Fire with Great Cause’

William Hirth’s iron-forged will and vision were 

essential to the formation of MFA.......................................................May/June 24

Building Success on Service 

Expanded agronomy service enhances value of Texas 

co-op for cotton and grain producers ..................................................May/June 4

The Precision Decision

Farm supply co-op helps members adopt precision ag 

technology to boost productivity........................................................March/April 8

Rain or shine, farmers depend on co-op ....................................................May/June 8

Top 100 Ag Co-ops 

Sales soar 9 percent over 2012 ..............................................................Sept./Oct. 8

Finance/ Financial Services

Changing ownership structure......................................................................Jan/Feb. 11

Farm Credit partners with USDA to strengthen rural America...............May/June 2

Investing In Your Co-op’s Future

Key finance, marketing issues examined during 

Farmer Co-ops Conference ....................................................................Jan./Feb. 10

Food/Grocery Co-ops

‘A Trend, Not a Fad’ 

Growing markets for local foods examined during 

Ag Outlook Forum .............................................................................March/April 14

Back from the Brink

Grocery co-op conversion prevents food desert 

in rural Wisconsin....................................................................................Sept./Oct.23

Food buying clubs in Canada........................................................................Jan./Feb. 27

New approach to food distribution ......................................................March/April 19

Twin Cities Cooperative 

Local food system study finds success factors .................................Sept./Oct.26

Welcome to the club!

Food buying club co-ops have potential to help 

increase food security for many............................................................Jan./Feb. 24

Food Hubs

Food hubs: an evolution of the co-op business model................................Jan./Feb 4

What We’ve Learned So Far

Food hub operators share insights needed for 

business success .....................................................................................July/Aug 14

Foreign Co-ops

Farmers, processors work together to boost Egypt’s 

tomato industry .................................................................................March/April 30

From the Ashes of War

Rebuilding ag co-op system in Bosnia and 

Herzegovina presents huge challenges .............................................Sept./Oct. 36

The Missing Piece

Why women farmers are key to global food security.......................July/Aug. 26

The Ripple Effect

Co-op uses USDA-funded program to improve 

education for Pakistani girls...............................................................March/April 4 

Fruit, Nuts, Vegetables

Aronia berry co-op among recipients of $25 million in 

USDA value-added grants.......................................................................Nov./Dec. 4

Farmers, processors work together to boost Egypt’s 

tomato industry .................................................................................March/April 30

MBG grower honored by White House, USDA ........................................Nov./Dec. 17

Grains/Oilseeds/Rice

A ‘Human Soul on Fire with Great Cause’

William Hirth’s iron-forged will and vision were 

essential to the formation of MFA.......................................................May/June 24

Building Success on Service 

Expanded agronomy service enhances value of 

Texas co-op for cotton and grain producers.......................................May/June 4

Co-ops urged to observe Grain Bin Safety Week .....................................Jan./Feb. 29

Health

Turning solitude into solidarity ....................................................................Sept./Oct. 30

History

Collective Courage

New book relates history of African-American 

cooperation..............................................................................................Sept./Oct. 32

Finding Courage

Author discusses her research into use of 

cooperatives by African-Americans....................................................Nov./Dec. 20

Finding the co-op links ...........................................................................March/April 25

A ‘Human Soul on Fire with Great Cause’

William Hirth’s iron-forged will and vision were 

essential to the formation of MFA.......................................................May/June 24

The Long Run

Number of Ag Co-ops Celebrating 100th Anniversaries 

on the rise ...............................................................................................May/June 18

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops in 

ag, utilities and health care sector ................................................March/April 22

Housing

Ready-Made Communities

Manufactured housing co-ops offer affordability, 

stability and security ...............................................................................Sept./Oct.22

Legal/Legislative

Farm Bill boosts co-op development........................................................March/April 2

Your guide to the new Farm Bill .................................................................May/June 35
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 41

Livestock & Poultry

Alpaca herd rescue shows need for education .......................................July/Aug. 35

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through 

own retail outlet ........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 5

Local/Sustainable/Organic Foods

Emergence of food hubs ...............................................................................Jan./Feb. 5

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve 

viability of small farmers.........................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Food hubs: an evolution of the co-op business model...............................Jan./Feb. 4

Local food investments expand market opportunities...............................July/Aug. 2

New approach to food distribution ......................................................March/April 19

Partners in Health

Co-ops have role to play in improving student nutrition .................May/June 12

The Right Blend

Fifth Season’s vegetable mixes help scale-up Wisc. 

farm-to-school marketing program.....................................................May/June 13

Side Hill Farmers Co-op markets local meat through 

own retail outlet ........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 5

Soup’s On!

Stone Soup Farm Co-op part of worker-owned farm trend..............Sept./Oct.24

A Trend, Not a Fad’

Growing markets for local foods examined during 

Ag Outlook Forum .............................................................................March/April 14

Twin Cities Cooperative 

Local food system study finds success factors: ................................Sept./Oct.26

What We’ve Learned So Far

Food hub operators share insights needed for 

business success ....................................................................................July/Aug. 14

Management

Co-ops: Leadership with a difference 

Consensus is the goal, but can be a long process..............................July/Aug. 8

Foremost’s Dave Fuhrmann looks back on 40 eventful 

years in dairy industry............................................................................Nov./Dec. 18

Investing In Your Co-op’s Future

Key finance, marketing issues examined during 

Farmer Co-ops Conference ....................................................................Jan./Feb. 10

Jerry Kozak: Life Lessons .............................................................................Jan./Feb. 15

Our First Year As a Co-op

Real Pickles shares lessons learned since converting 

to a co-op..................................................................................................July/Aug. 30

What We’ve Learned So Far

Food hub operators share insights needed for business 

success .....................................................................................................July/Aug. 14

Marketing

3 IN A ROW!

Grain, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and 

income records .........................................................................................Sept./Oct. 4

‘A Trend, Not a Fad’

Growing markets for local foods examined during 

Ag Outlook Forum .............................................................................March/April 14

Aronia berry co-op among recipients of $25 million in 

USDA value-added grants.......................................................................Nov./Dec. 4

Building Success on Service 

Expanded agronomy service enhances value of Texas 

co-op for cotton and grain producers ..................................................May/June 4

Dairy co-ops’ milk volume up, but market share 

down slightly ......................................................................................March/April 27

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve 

viability of small farmers.........................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Gauging Performance 

An ‘extra value’ assessment of the nation’s top 

18 dairy co-ops, 1992-2012.....................................................................Nov./Dec. 24

MBG grower honored by White House, USDA ........................................Nov./Dec. 17

Mother’s Milk Co-op......................................................................................Sept./Oct. 28

Partners in Health

Co-ops have role to play in improving student nutrition .................May/June 12

The Right Blend

Fifth Season’s vegetable mixes help scale-up Wisc. 

farm-to-school marketing program.....................................................May/June 13

Top 100 Ag Co-ops 

Sales soar 9 percent over 2012 ..............................................................Sept./Oct. 8

Member Relations

A Two-Way Street

Members must fulfill responsibilities to their co-op............................July/Aug. 4

Co-ops: Leadership with a difference

Consensus is the goal, but can be a long process...............................July/Aug 8

Rain or shine, farmers depend on co-op ....................................................May/June 8

Reach out with effective member relations ................................................July/Aug. 6

Staying Relevant

Survey shows that co-ops are still vital to 

members, but more effort needed to connect with 

young producers ....................................................................................Nov./Dec. 14

What Leads to Satisfied Co-op Members?

Surveys of dairy farmers show management and 

pricing are key..........................................................................................Jan./Feb. 20

Mergers

Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions, 2000-2013 ..................................................Nov./Dec. 11

Minority Co-ops

Collective Courage

New book relates history of African-American 

cooperation..............................................................................................Sept./Oct. 32

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers co-op helps improve 

viability of small farmers.........................................................................Sept./Oct.20

Finding Courage

Author discusses her research into use of 

cooperatives by African-Americans....................................................Nov./Dec. 20

Statistics

3 IN A ROW!

Grain, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and 

income records .........................................................................................Sept./Oct. 4

Ag co-ops remain strong ................................................................................Jan./Feb. 2

Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions, 2000-2013 ...................................................Nov./Dec. 11

Dairy co-ops’ milk volume up, but market share 

down slightly ......................................................................................March/April 27

Gauging Performance 

An ‘extra value’ assessment of the nation’s top 18 

dairy co-ops, 1992-2012..........................................................................Nov./Dec. 24

The Long Run

Number of ag co-ops celebrating 100th anniversaries 

on the rise ...............................................................................................May/June 18

Top 100 Ag Co-ops 

Sales soar 9 percent over 2012 ..............................................................Sept./Oct. 8

Utility Co-ops

Carolina co-op uses USDA loan to help members 

conserve energy .................................................................................March/April 11

Leveraging with other USDA programs .......................................................Jan./Feb. 9

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops in ag, 

utilities and health care sectors ......................................................March/April 22

USDA works with co-ops on $250-million, energy-efficiency 

effort .............................................................................................................Jan./Feb. 8

USDA

Aronia berry co-op among recipients of $25 million in 

USDA value-added grants.......................................................................Nov./Dec. 4

Farm Credit partners with USDA to strengthen rural America...............May/June 2

Finding the co-op links ...........................................................................March/April 25

Leveraging with other USDA programs .......................................................Jan./Feb. 9

Local food investments expand market opportunities...............................July/Aug. 2

MBG growers honored by White House, USDA ......................................Nov./Dec. 17

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops 

in ag, utilities and health-care sectors ...........................................March/April 22

USDA supports co-op development, small- and 

mid-size farmers .....................................................................................May/June 37

USDA works with co-ops on $250-million, 

energy-efficiency effort ............................................................................Jan./Feb. 8
42 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives

Worker Co-ops

Maine island community creates worker-owned 

co-op to retain local businesses, jobs.................................................July/Aug. 20

Our First Year as a Co-op

Real Pickles shares lessons learned since converting 

to a co-op..................................................................................................July/Aug. 30

Soup’s On!

Stone Soup Farm Co-op part of worker-owned farm trend .............Sept./Oct.24 

Farmers work together to meet common needs.......................................Sept./Oct.25

AUTHORS

Ali, Sarah

3 IN A ROW!

Grain, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and 

income records .........................................................................................Sept./Oct. 4

Top 100 ag co-op’s sales soar 9 percent over 2012...................................Sept./Oct. 8

Brummelm, Luke

The Precision Decision

Farm supply co-op helps members adopt precision 

ag technology to boost productivity..................................................March/April 8

Campbell, Dan

Building Success on Service

Expanded agronomy service enhances value of 

Texas co-op for cotton and grain producers.......................................May/June 4

The Privileges of Membership 

Co-ops pursue wide range of ways to communicate 

the ‘co-op difference’ .............................................................................July/Aug. 10

Catto, Chelsea

Ready-Made Communities

Manufactured housing co-ops offer affordability, 

stability and security ..............................................................................Sept./Oct. 22

Cheney, Emily M. Lippold

On the Road with Youth TCI

Peer-to-peer training program helps young people 

pursue co-op dreams.............................................................................Sept./Oct. 27

Chesnick, David

Top 100 ag co-ops’ sales soar 9 percent over 2012...................................Sept./Oct. 8

Clostio, Sharise

Turning solitude into solidarity

Montana Midwives Co-op helping to improve 

conditions for workers and clients......................................................Sept./Oct. 30

Everett, Rebecca

Soup’s On!

Stone Soup Farm Co-op part of worker-owned 

farm trend.................................................................................................Sept./Oct. 24

Eversull, E. Eldon

3 IN A ROW!

Gran, dairy sales help ag co-ops set revenue and 

income records .........................................................................................Sept./Oct. 4

Co-op Mergers, Acquisitions, 2000-2013 ...................................................Nov./Dec. 11

The Long Run

Number of ag co-ops celebrating 100th anniversaries 

on the rise................................................................................................May/June 18

Top 100 ag co-op’s sales soar 9 percent over 2012...................................Sept./Oct. 8

Gray, Thomas

Collective Courage

New book relates history of African-American 

cooperation..............................................................................................Sept./Oct. 32

Guedenet, Hannah and Paul

The Missing Piece

Why women farmers are key to global food security.......................July/Aug. 26

Hanson, James C.

From the Ashes of War

Rebuilding ag co-op system in Bosnia and 

Herzegovina presents huge challenges .............................................Sept./Oct. 36

Hines, Twanna A.

The Ripple Effect

Co-op uses USDA-funded program to improve 

education for Pakistan girls ................................................................March/April 4

Howard, Kristin

Our first year as a co-op

Worker-owned food processor shares lessons 

learned since converting to a co-op....................................................July/Aug. 30

Lay, Chuck

A ‘Human Soul on Fire with Great Cause’

William Hirth’s iron-forged will and vision were 

essential to the formation of MFA.......................................................May/June 24

Liebrand, Carolyn B.

What leads to satisfied co-op members?

Surveys of dairy farmers show management and 

pricing are key..........................................................................................Jan./Feb. 20

Lihlani, Skipper

The Right Blend

Fifth Season’s vegetable mixes help scale-up Wisc. 

farm-to-school marketing program.....................................................May/June 12

Ling, Charles

Dairy co-ops’ milk volume up, but markets share 

down slightly........................................................................................March/April 27

Gauging Performance 

An ‘extra value’ assessment of the nation’s top 18 

dairy co-ops, 1992-2012..........................................................................Nov./Dec. 24

Locker, Ali

Welcome to the Club!

Food buying club co-ops have potential to help 

increase food security for many............................................................Jan./Feb. 24

Ludwig, Robert

Consultant Donald Senechal remembered as a major 

force for co-op development................................................................Sept./Oct. 31

Matavulj, Miodrag

From the Ashes of War.................................................................................Sept./Oct. 36

Matson, James; Shaw, Jessica; Thayer, Jeremiah

Food hubs: an evolution of the co-op business model...............................Jan./Feb. 4

What We’ve Learned So Far

Food hub operators share insights needed for 

business success ....................................................................................July/Aug. 14

Mbevi-Nderitu, Lydia

The Missing Piece

Why women farmers are key to global food security.......................July/Aug. 26

Morales, Alfonso

Welcome to the Club!

Food buying club co-ops have potential to help 

increase food security for many ..........................................................Jan./Feb. 24

The Right Blend

Fifth Season’s vegetable mixes help scale-up Wisc. 

farm-to-school marketing program.....................................................May/June 12

O’Brien, Doug

The Co-op Connection: How does your co-op connect?

Much to celebrate, but much more to do.............................................Nov./Dec. 8

Farm Credit partners with USDA to strengthen rural America...............May/June 2

Patrie, Bill

Remembering the ‘Badlands’ Report.........................................................May/June 30

Consultant Donald Senechal remembered as a major 

force for co-op development................................................................Sept./Oct. 31
Rural Cooperatives / November/Deember 2014 43

Pitman, Lynn

Investing in your co-op’s future

Key finance, marketing issues examined during Farmer 

Co-ops Conference..................................................................................Jan./Feb. 10

Ramsey, Margolis

Co-ops: an extension of your farm business – or your 

other business? .........................................................................................Nov./Dec. 2

Reynolds, Bruce J.

Co-ops= Community Development

Cooperative developers share ideas in Minneapolis ........................Jan./Feb. 18

Co-ops: Leadership with a difference

Consensus is the goal, but can be a long process..............................July/Aug. 8

The New Deal Co-ops

Depression-fighting strategies involved co-ops in ag,

utilities and health-care sectors ......................................................March/April 22

Shah, Danial

The Ripple Effect

Co-op uses USDA-funded program to improve 

education for Pakistani girls ....................................................................Jan./Feb. 4

Smith, Cathy

Clean Energy Co-op promotes solar energy in Pennsylvania ...............Sept./Oct. 18

Stocking, Joan

Twin Cities Co-op

Local food system study finds success factors ................................Sept./Oct. 26

Thomas, Mark

Farmers on the Move

Michigan Hispanic growers’ co-op helps improve 

viability of small farmers........................................................................Sept./Oct. 20

Thompson, Stephen

‘A Trend, Not a Fad’

Growing markets for local foods examined 

during Ag Outlook Forum...................................................................March/April 14

Wadsworth, James

A Two-Way Street

Members must fulfill responsibilities to their co-op............................July/Aug. 4

Webster, Megan

Back from the Brink

Grocery co-op conversion prevents food desert in 

rural Wisconsin .......................................................................................Sept./Oct. 23

Witting, Kristin

Farmers, processors work together to boost Egypt’s 

tomato industry....................................................................................March/April 30
Periodicals Postage Paid

U.S. Department of Agriculture

United States

Department of Agriculture

Washington, DC 20250

OFFICIAL BUSINESS

Penalty for private use, $300

NOTICE:

❑ Check here to stop receiving this publication and mail this

sheet to the address below.

❑ NEW ADDRESS. Send mailing label on this page and changes

to:

USDA/Rural Business—Cooperative Service

Stop 0705

Washington, D. C. 20250-3255

44 November/December 2014 / Rural Cooperatives