Wisconsin Ag Connection - Wisconsin Companies Make List of Top 100 Ag Co-ops

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Wisconsin Companies Make List of Top 100 Ag Co-ops
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 10/24/2014

In recognition of National Cooperative Month, the USDA has released its list of the 'Nation's Top 100 Cooperatives,' of which Wisconsin has several placings. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says his home state of Iowa has the most cooperatives than any other state with 16, followed by Minnesota with 13.

Wisconsin is home to five of the country's top co-ops. They include Foremost Farms USA, Baraboo; Coulee Region Organic Produce Pool (CROPP or Organic Valley), LaFarge; United Cooperative, Beaver Dam; Equity Cooperative Livestock Sales Association, Baraboo; and Landmark Services Cooperative, Cottage Grove.

The agency also noted that the top 100 cooperatives also enjoyed a third consecutive year of record sales. Revenue for those companies exceeded $174 billion in 2013, an increase of nine percent over the previous year.

Companies that handle dairy and grain each had two co-ops make double-digit gains, while cotton, rice and sugar each had one co-op jump by at least 10 places. Grain cooperatives have experienced the largest increase in top 100 representation during the past decade.

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