Value of Cooperatives Highlighted at Federal Workshop
 MADISON, Wis. (June 25, 2010) – Cooperative Network and many of its agricultural cooperative members met today in Madison to highlight the importance of cooperatives before a federal antitrust workshop. The workshop was held in the Wisconsin Union Theater on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and is one of five workshops around the country sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Justice. It focused on consolidation of control over the dairy industry.
Cooperative Network is concerned that Department of Justice will make changes to the Capper-Volstead Act, which provides co-ops a limited immunity from antitrust laws.
“We’ve gathered a number of our members here today to tell our stories of how cooperatives create competition,” said Bill Oemichen, Cooperative Network president and CEO. “Cooperatives allow our nation’s farmers to receive more money for the crops they produce, meanwhile saving consumers money at the grocery store.”
Supporters of cooperatives wore green buttons that read “Cooperatives Create Competition” to today’s workshop.
“Agricultural cooperatives are an integral part of this state’s economy,” said Oemichen. “Wisconsin is one of the leading cooperative states in the nation and, according to the federal government, our 865 cooperative businesses are owned by more than 2.9 million residents of our state. Our dairy cooperatives market more than 85 percent of the milk produced by our dairy farmers and manufacture more than 60 percent of our state’s cheese.”
“Next door in Minnesota, 1,012 cooperatives are owned by 3.4 million residents of the state. Agricultural supply cooperatives are the leading providers of seed, fuel, feed and other crop inputs to that state’s farmers,” said Oemichen. |
