Rural Leaders Continue to Watch Region's Cooperative Activity

Rural leaders from across the nation continue to watch the Upper Midwest's new cooperatives, looking for ways to boost farm income and spur rural economic growth, according to the leader of the Quentin Burdick Center for Cooperatives at North Dakota State University.

"Especially in light of the poor farm economy, supporters of rural America are looking at the Upper Midwest for answers. The success of new generation cooperatives in our region that add value to otherwise traditional commodities and livestock are gaining more and more attention in political and economic development circles," says Bill Nelson, director of the Quentin Burdick Center for Cooperatives (QBCC) at NDSU. 

"Government agencies, as well as leaders in the food industry, want to learn from the success of area farmers and ranchers who are selling pasta rather than durum, sugar instead of beets, and processed bison products rather than live animals. They want to learn how cooperatives can help them capture some of the profit of processing instead of letting private industry take that income out of state," he explains. "Farmers in states from Michigan to Colorado are drawing on the Minnesota/North Dakota experience and a large number of value-added processing cooperatives have either been formed or are in the formation process." 

"The entrepreneurial spirit of co-op members and their leadership is of great interest because it may give other rural states the boost they need to put more money back in the pocket of producers," Nelson says. 

That growing interest has underscored the importance of work at the Burdick Center. Frayne Olson, associate director, is leading a project to analyze the financial aspects that spell success or failure in closed-contract or new generation co-ops. A second study under the leadership of agricultural economist William Nganje will expand that work.

Another USDA-funded study focuses on co-op business arrangements at the production level. Nelson explains, "For instance, a few or many growers may share equipment, labor, or storage facilities or join the cooperative to operate large enterprises difficult for one farmer to manage alone. The cooperative arrangement may save them time and money, generate more profits, and give them a chance to benefit from the talents of others."

Nelson would like to hear from farmers and ranchers who have pursued such arrangements. The positives or negatives they have experienced may be worth sharing with others. When the financial and production level studies are completed, the Burdick Center will publish them for use by the general public.

The Burdick Center is also teaching college level courses with hopes of training future co-op members and directors. 

The QBCC also assists cooperatives in the formation process by conducting marketing and feasibility studies. "The same principles that made electricity and telephones available to rural areas in the early to mid-1900s are viable today - in our region and around the world," Nelson emphasized. "Cooperatives that allow people to pool their resources - money and leadership - to create a business they own and benefit directly from is still important, and in some cases, essential." 

Nelson and his Burdick Center staff also offer executive training for professional and volunteer management from cooperatives.

To learn more about the Quentin Burdick Center for Cooperatives at NDSU, contact Nelson and his staff at (701) 231-1016, PO Box 5636 Fargo, ND 58105 or at Bill_Nelson@ndsu.nodak.edu.

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Sources: Bill Nelson and Kathy Coyle, 701-231-6370, kcoyle@ndsuext.nodak.edu 
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu

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