Agriculture cooperatives are commonly seen as groups of farmers pooling their resources to share the expenses related to the farming industry. However, there are several well-known brands that are not corporations, but rather cooperatives.
Brands such as Land O’ Lakes, Sunkist, and OceanSpray are actually owned by the farmers themselves through a cooperative agreement. The election process and co-op voting are critical to an agriculture cooperative's operations.
Like many corporations and unions, agricultural cooperatives have a board of directors. Unlike corporations, the board is elected by members of the cooperative rather than by shareholders.
Outside of the board, there are standard positions, such as CEOs, various departmental presidents, and vice presidents. Below these positions are committees that are often composed of board members and experienced members of the cooperative.
These committees provide recommendations to the board and co-op members on best practices and policies. They also play a critical role in education regarding emerging threats and the latest recommendations of agricultural scientists.
In co-operatives that are spread across a wide geographic area, there may also be regional and local councils that help address issues faced by local farmers. For example, a crop may be grown nationally, but only a small group of farmers are in areas affected by a specific crop disease. Local councils can assist in dealing with these problems rather than burdening the national co-op as a whole.
Election processes in agricultural cooperatives are similar to those of other farmer and independent small business co-op elections. Elections are held on a regular basis to determine the national leadership of the organization, and members elect regional and local councils to represent them. These local elections are important thanks to the specialized assistance they offer for members in their area.
Members aren’t simply voting for leadership–they also vote on policies and statements. The agricultural sector in the United States is extremely powerful and maintains close ties with both government regulators and Congress. Statements decided on by larger co-ops can have national impact on agricultural policy and laws. With the national spotlight, member participation in these decisions is highly encouraged.
Members may campaign for open positions or recommend others. Voting may take place in person, by mail, or online. Once the votes are tallied and announced, newly elected members take office. These leadership changes help keep fresh ideas at the forefront of the organization's policies.
Farmers often live in isolated areas of the country, far from metropolitan centers. Due to financial limitations, agriculture co-ops can only sustain so many offices. This creates challenges in food co-op elections as well as agricultural ones, as members may have difficulty reaching these offices to vote in person.
Therefore, many organizations have begun to move their elections online. Sites such as ElectionBuddy offer organizations, cooperatives, and businesses the ability to hold elections easily, as well as unmatched transparency so that members have continued faith in the election process. With its simple user interface, ElectionBuddy is helping make elections convenient for organizations of all kinds!
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