Case Studies

Cooperative Producers Inc. (CPI) is one of Nebraska’ oldest agriculture cooperatives, but it is also one of the largest and fastest growing cooperative in the area. CPI’s mission is two fold. The company believes that growing partnerships in agriculture should always be balanced by ethical business practices to deliver value to both the coop’s owners and the communities it...

Farmers Cooperative began March 28, 1903, when a group of 115 farmers joined together in Nebraska to form the Dorchester Farmers Cooperative Grain and Livestock Association. The farmers’ goal was to leverage collective resources for the greater good of the group. Nearly 110 years and many mergers and acquisitions later, the cooperative’s mission remains the same as it serves nearly 9,000...

Heritage Cooperative Inc. (Heritage) is an Ohio-based member-owned agricultural cooperative that was officially established in 2009. “Heritage is the product of the consolidation of two very old, longstanding cooperatives,” says Eric Parthemore, president of Heritage. To note, the Farmers Commission Company, one half of the combined partnership, has been around in several incarnations since...

The Pismo Oceano Vegetable Exchange (POVE) grows, packs and ships the freshest vegetables harvested from 2,000 acres of California’s central coast. The five main growers operate fields from Moro Bay to Rio Arroyo Grande, producing tender vegetables for traditional markets and Asian specialty markets alike. POVE originated as a grower-owned cooperative in 1928, growing out of a Pismo...