Good Reasons to Cooperate
Southern Ag Today has recently published several articles on why producers should consider joining, starting, or becoming more involved with a cooperative in their state. An annual publication from the US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development[i] (USDA RD) offers solid financial reasons to do the same. How does a return on investment (allocated equity in the case of a cooperative) of 11.3% to 45.2% sound? It appears that cooperatives offer a distinct advantage to farmers in their state.
How Does the South Stack Up?
The readership might be interested in a little competition (or some light post-holiday reading) – how does the US Southern Region[ii] stack up with the rest of the US? Table 12 in the report cited above provides information on cooperatives represented in each state, which are illustrated with the heat map graphics below and ranked[iii].
Cooperatives Doing Business in Each State
Texas (#2) pulls its weight, ranking behind Minnesota in the number of cooperatives doing business in the state. Oklahoma (#11), Tennessee (12th), Mississippi (16th), and Alabama (17Th) also make the top 20.
Number of Cooperative Members in Each State
Kentucky comes in first place! Virginia (#8), Texas (#9), Tennessee (#11), Arkansas (#18), Mississippi (#19), and Oklahoma (#20) combine forces to propel the Southern US into just over one-third of the top 20 placements.
Marketing Cooperatives Headquartered in Each State
Marketing cooperatives generate their revenue from the sale of members’ products. Texas again takes the #1 spot, but only Virginia in the Southern Region makes the top 20 at #19. These results, however, may not reflect next-generation cooperatives and cooperatives organized as LLCs (i.e., peanut cooperatives in Georgia)[iv].
Supply and Service Cooperatives Headquartered in Each State
Supply and service cooperatives provide farmer members with what their name suggests. Southern states claim nine of the top 20 spots, with Tennessee (#4), Alabama (#6), Mississippi (#9), Texas (tied for #9), Oklahoma (#12), Arkansas (#16), Kentucky (tied for #16), Virginia (tied for #16), and Louisiana (#20).
And the Winner Is….
Honestly, anyone who is a member of a well-functioning cooperative! In terms of sheer numbers, the North Central Region is first, followed by the Southern Region in second. However, the presence of more cooperatives, their members, and specific types of cooperatives in various regions of the US is largely influenced by the types of commodities grown and the number of different commodities that can be cultivated in each region. Farm size and the density of farming operations in each location also play a role. Finally, farmers’ willingness to collaborate with other farmers seems basic, but refers to the willingness of farmers from two or three generations in the past. Many cooperatives have been around for a long time, with 78% of all cooperatives operating for more than 50 years[1].
The “well-functioning” part of a cooperative is largely due to the engagement of its members. If your farm is part of a cooperative, strive to be engaged with it by attending meetings, voting in elections, serving as a board member, and encouraging the next generation to do the same.
If you are looking to start a cooperative or improve a cooperative’s performance, many land-grant universities have specialists who help cooperatives succeed by training and developing cooperative board members and staff.
[i] Service Report 87. USDA Rural Development Rural-Business Cooperative Service. November 2024 [Unpublished Report]. https://www.rd.usda.gov/publication-cooperatives/sr-87-agricultural-cooperative-statistics-2023
[ii] The US Southern Region, as defined by the Southern Risk Management Education Center, comprises 13 states, which account for approximately 26% of the US states (and a larger proportion of the land mass). The other regions are also defined, based on the types of crops grown in each region.
[iii] To keep things simple, this article just compares the number of states each region has in the Top 20, as the acres of farmland, number of farmers, and the volume of business through each cooperative in each region may vary significantly.
[iv] The report excludes cooperatives that deviate from the one-member, one-vote model, as well as those that handle more than 50% of their volume from non-members.
Richards, Steve. “Agricultural Cooperatives in the United States: How Does the South Stack Up?” Southern Ag Today 6(1.5). January 2, 2026. Permalink
