Local & Regional Food Systems: The Co-operative Advantage Erbin Crowell New England Farmers Union Annual Convention // 7 Nov 2015 Concord, NH 1Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Accessing Local & Regional Food Systems Clearly the local food movement is more than a trend. Especially in New England, where we’ve seen an explosion in the growth of CSAs, farmers markets, farm-to-school activity, and direct sales at farms, consumers generally prefer to buy local. Meeting that increasing demand, however, is not always easy. This panel address the challenges and opportunities facing local and regional food systems. 2Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Vision & Challenges Local / Regional Vision Small / Family Scale Economic Democracy Diverse Food Systems, Economies Food Security More Sustainable, Resilient Economies Challenges Scale & Efficiency Risk for Small Producers Access & Affordability Duplication of Effort Enterprise Succession Unstable Infrastructure Perception as Trend 3Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Advantages of Food System Co-operatives Democratic ownership and control Create economies of scale and efficiency while supporting small family operations Strengthened bargaining power of small producers Enable producers to specialize and increase efficiency, affordability Help farmer members focus on core business and delegate services without giving up control Shared risk, training, eudcation, market access Root economic infrastructure in our region across generations 4Erbin Crowell, Vice President

What is a Co-operative? “A co-operative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise.” International Co-operative Alliance 5Erbin Crowell, Vice President

What is a Co-operative? “Co-ops are producer- and user-owned businesses that are controlled by — and operate for the benefit of — their members, rather than outside investors.” United States Department of Agriculture 6Erbin Crowell, Vice President

NFU Co-operative Heritage Officially known as the “Farmers' Educational and Cooperative Union of America” (1902) Key role in passage of Capper Volstead Act in 1922 & Cooperative Marketing Act of 1926 Founded Farmers Union Central Exchange in 1931; merged with Harvest States Co-operative to form CHS: –Largest US-based co-op by revenue (2012) –69th on Fortune 500 list by revenue (2012) –25th largest convenience store chain in US 7Erbin Crowell, Vice President

United Nations Year of Co-ops Co-ops “in their various forms, promote the fullest possible participation in the economic and social development of all people, including women, youth, older persons, persons with disabilities and indigenous peoples, are becoming a major factor of economic and social development and contribute to the eradication of poverty.” 8Erbin Crowell, Vice President

UN Year of Family Farming “The importance of agricultural co- operatives in improving the lives of millions of smallholder farmers and their families cannot be overstated.” 9Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Co-operatives… …are more common than we think Majority of US farmers are co-op members 1 billion members worldwide (1 in 3 in the US) More people are members than directly own stock in corporations …are innovative Co-operatives are pioneers in organic agriculture, healthy food, Fair Trade, relocalization, regional aggregation and distribution …are successful 30,000 co-ops in all sectors of US economy 10Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Co-op Sectors Benefit the Regional Food System Producer co-ops help farmers and fishermen to market and process their products and Supply Co- ops secure needed supplies and services. Rural Utility Co-ops provide electrical power and telecommunications services. Financial Co-ops & Credit Unions provide credit and financial services to members. Worker Co-ops secure sustainable employment infrastructure for employees. Food Co-ops enable consumers to access products they want and provide retail outlets for local producers. 11Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Examples of Food System Co-ops in New England Produce –Deep Root Organic Co-op (1986) –Local Harvest CSA (2002) –North Country Farmers Co-op (’08) Dairy –Agri-Mark / Cabot (1916) –Organic Valley (1985) –St. Albans Co-op Creamery (1919) Seafood –Yankee Fishermen’s Co-op (1990) –Port Clyde Fresh Catch (2007) Inputs & Supplies –Greenfield Farmers Co-operative Exchange (1918) –FEDCO (1978) 12 Lending –Farm Credit System (1916) Energy & Utilities –Vermont Electric Co-op (1938) –New Hampshire Energy Co-op (‘39) –Acorn Energy Co-op (2008) Worker Co-ops –Equal Exchange (1986) –Real Pickles (conversion, 2012) –Artisan Beverage Co-op (conversion, 2013) Food Retail –Hanover Consumer Co-op (1936) –Monadnock Food Co-op (2010) Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Co-ops in New England 1,400 businesses Farmer co-ops, food co- ops, worker co-ops, credit unions, etc. Locally owned by 5 million members Earn $9 billion in annual revenue Employ 22,000 people Pay $1 billion in wages Source: 13Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Neighboring Food Co-op Association Vision of a “thriving co- operative economy, rooted in a healthy, just and sustainable regional food system.” 35 food co-ops and start- ups 90,000 member owners $255 million in revenue Estimated $50 million in local purchases Using purchasing power to fill gaps in the regional food system 14Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Food Co-ops & Local Economies Erbin Crowell, Vice President15 Source: Healthy Foods Healthy Communities: The Social and Economic Impacts of Food Co-ops, 2012, NCGA: strongertogether.coop

Food Co-ops & Local Economies Erbin Crowell, Vice President16 Source: Healthy Foods Healthy Communities: The Social and Economic Impacts of Food Co-ops, 2012, NCGA: strongertogether.coop

NFCA/NEFU Collaboration Affiliate Membership in NEFU Influence Policy that Affects New England’s Producers & Consumers Co-operative Education Member Guided Technical Assistance 17Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Cross Sector Collaboration USDA VAPG to explore collaboration (Deep Root Organic Co-op, NEFU, NFCA) Planning and value- added product innovation Link producer co-op supply with food co-op demand Produce, minimally processed and frozen products 18Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Farm to Freezer 19 Opportunity in marketplace: frozen fruits & vegetables NFCA pilot with Deep Root and other suppliers, Challenge: Processing Infrastructure & Distribution USDA VAPG Support Relaunched Fall 2015 –Blueberries, Organic Broccoli, Organic Green Beans, Organic Edamame, Non-GMO Sweet Corn Exclusively at NFCA Member Food Co-ops Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Co-ops & Local Food Systems Co-operative enterprises… …enable small producers to achieve scale, …are member-owned and governed, …support specialization and efficiency, …root infrastructure in our region, …are successful businesses, …are economically resilient, …build more sustainable local and regional food systems. 20Erbin Crowell, Vice President

Resources & Contact Info Erbin Crowell New England Farmers Union Neighboring Food Co-op Association 21Erbin Crowell, Vice President