permaculture

[Lawrence London <lfljvenaura@gmail.com>]

Reply to a comment from Rachel in a local farmer forum who writes:

I’ve been noticing that it is becoming more and more common to see  
large-scale
wholesale farms supplying affordable organic produce to our local
supermarkets, and I am afraid that this will eventually translate into it
becoming harder for  local non-certified and organically-certified small
farms to compete. One major difficulty that I had as a start-up organic
farmer was that there was not a great amount of farm financial data
available which makes it difficult to know if my business performance was
meeting industry standards. Obviously the first task of any business is to
obtain good market and costs information to generate a realistic farm
business plan. I spent a year analyzing the market and my own numbers, but
without benchmarked standards it is more difficult for start-up farmers
like myself to  understand how to manage and improve my own practices to
increase economic efficiency. Obviously the most successful farms sold at
the most popular marketplace(s) and  exploited the economy of scale, while
others restructure their businesses by diversifying or adding value to
their farmed produce. But not all start-up farming businesses have those
options and it is still important to assess how they are operating compared
to leading businesses in the sector. Benchmarking can be a tool that can
help identify excessive costs and inefficiencies, and used to compare your
performance with the performance of others engaged in a similar activity,
and learning from the lessons that these comparisons throw up and borrowing
good ideas from others about how to improve. To my knowledge there is not a
real reliable source of this benchmark info out there and it was my
experience that other farmers are hesitant to talk openly about this type
of information.

Personally I believe that it is going to be critical that local farmers
stick together and help each other do economically better if we are going
to survive in this global market place. Not only do we need the average and
best farms to openly share information to generate more benchmark standards
(business KPIs), but we need to also  invest in educating the public why it
is crucial for them to support local farming  in order to drive more people
to the farmer markets and/or to buy locally *not just organically* (e.g.
disadvantages of food miles and benefits to health & wellness, costs, and
environmental sustainability etc). Is this a concern of other small farmers
in the area and what is the best strategy as a community that we can carry
out to address these important issues?

AND:

There are some good articles on the internet that explain the concept
> behind farmer cooperatives like this one:
>
 | Entrepreneurs Toolkit

> http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives
>

My input:

Cultivate Coop
http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Main_Page
Cultivate.Coop is a library of information about cooperatives. Everything
here is created by and for people who work in co-ops. You can edit and
upload content to Cultivate.coop just like Wikipedia. Cultivate.coop is
also home to the Cooperative Education Network, a group of practitioners
developing a centralized collection of materials on co-op education.My
comment:

Farmer cooperatives can serve CSA's, individual gardeners and farmers,
neighborhood gardening associations and community garden growers. A coop
could become a subset of some other organization with existing facilities
so it could avoid having to entirely reinvent the wheel. What about
approaching food hubs in the region about hosting a coop? There are a lot
of them based in the Triangle that and some from out of state that serve
NC. I hear from someone who worked for one that they do an incredible
business and are always in need of farmer-suppliers with local ones
sometimes having to outsource from other states. Though redundant in
function it could allow the coop to be independent while benefitting from
it financially and as a source of product. So, what is the difference
between a commercial food hub and a true coop? You have organizations such
as the Triangle Food Shuttle which serves food pantries. They have the
resources that a coop would need and could pay them for, monetarily, or by
donating produce for distribution to the pantries. The Shuttle has its own
farm but could still benefit from collaboration by gaining access to
products not available from its own garden. This sounds like a true win-win
opportunity. Food pantries have some funding from government agencies which
is used to buy food to distribute. They could buy a lot of food from a
coop. Some grocers use money raised for charitable purposes to purchase
food from local growers to donate to food pantries. They too could do
business with a coop which could also serve as a coop csa. What about a
crafts coop operating under the same roof with farmers? Orange County,
through Cooperative Extension and Economic Development, is creating a giant
food hub with related projects (teaching/farmland lease/value added
processing facility [all destined to be financially self-sustaining]) for
any Orange County farmers interested in participating. Maybe the Orange
County growers in an independent NC farmer coop could sell through them and
reach a much larger customer base.

I was wondering about farmer collectives and found this incredible resource
on coops:
Cultivate Coop
http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Worker_
Cooperatives_and_Collectives
Differences Between Worker Cooperatives and Collectives

The terms "cooperative" and "collective" are often used interchangeably.
While there is some overlap between the two, these terms have distinct
meanings:

A *cooperative *is an organization that is owned and democratically-governed
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Governance_and_Management>
by its members.  Each member owns one voting share, and has one vote on
major decisions as outlined in the organization's bylaws
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Cooperative_Bylaws>.  Cooperatives generally
adhere to the seven principles
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/International_Statement_of_Co-operative_Identity_%28Seven_Cooperative_Principles%29>
outlined by the International Cooperative Alliance.

A *worker cooperative* is a cooperative in which the workers are the only
member-owners.  This means that each worker owns one voting share, and is
able to participate in the governance
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Governance_and_Management>
(and often the management
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Governance_and_Management>)
of the business.  Because workers are the only people eligible to become
member-owners, outside investors or consumers do not participate in the
governance of the cooperative.  Some worker cooperatives have elected
managers, or managers who are hired by the elected Board of Directors. Some
worker cooperatives that are not collectives have a flat management
structure at an operational/worker level with no managers, but key
decisions made by the Board of Directors.

A *collective* is an organization that is managed without hierarchy.  This
means that every member has equal decision-making power.  Some decisions
may be delegated to individual members or sub-committees, but no one has
the special, un-recallable authority usually granted to a manager.  The
legal structure will specify that all Members are automatically Directors
and must accept the responsibilities of Directorshop, or that the
organization is managed by Member meetings.

A *worker collective* is a particular kind of worker cooperative.  A worker
collective adheres to the same cooperative principles as does a worker
cooperative.  However, worker collectives also adopt a non-hierarchical
(often called a "flat" or "horizontal") management structure.  This means
that all workers are equal co-managers: nobody has un-recallable
decision-making power or authority over another worker.  Smaller decisions
may be made by individuals, department teams, or committees, but all
collective members participate in both major management
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Governance_and_Management>
and governance
<http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Differences_Between_Governance_and_Management>
decisions.
As you can see, the word "cooperative" refers to a specific *ownership
*structure.
Cooperatives can be owned by workers, community members, or both.  The word
"collective" refers to how members participate in the *management *structure.
Collectives manage worker-owned cooperatives, consumer cooperatives,
non-profits, or volunteer activist projects.

<>
The time is perfect for a farmer coop startup in NC. Would a crowdfunding
project be in order? Generate interest among existing food hubs and food
shuttle-pantries?

On Wed, Apr 26, 2017 at 9:52 AM, Lawrence London <lfljvenaura@gmail.com>
wrote:

>
> Farmer Cooperatives - www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org
> http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives
>
> Farmer Cooperatives
>
> This article outlines the specific benefits and workings of Farmer
> Cooperatives (also known as Agricultural Cooperatives).
>
>    - 2012 has been declared as the International Year of Cooperatives
>    (IYC) by IFAD, in partnership with the UN Food and Agricultural
>    Organisation and the World Food Programme[1]
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-IFAD-0>.
>
>
> Definition and Concept
>
> Farmer cooperatives are formal methods of organisation for groups of
> farmers within communities, hamlets, or regions. They are operated by local
> group members who generally ‘share’ resources and earnings, and work
> towards mutual benefits for all members. As such, farmers cooperatives
> unify the farms of small-scale producers while each farmer continues to own
> her/his land and farm it individually[2]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-1>.
>
>
> Farmer cooperatives work to promote sustained livelihoods, rural
> employment, sustainable resource mobilisation and use, empowerment and
> social reform[3]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-GEAC-2>.
>
>
> As all cooperatives in general, Farmers Cooperatives are voluntary
> member-based organisations that exist in every sector of the economy. The
> primary objective of all types of Cooperatives is to meet the economic and
> social needs of their members. This sets them apart from investor-owned
> businesses, which have the primary purpose of maximizing profits for
> shareholders. (See more on cooperatives in general here, including the
> seven international principles of all co-operatives
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Cooperatives>).
> Why form a farmer cooperative?
>
> For small-scale farmers, ensuring household food security or income can be
> difficult given the constraints of farm size and access to technical modes
> of production - farm sizes of less than two hectares form 85% of all farms
> in the world[4]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-3>.
> Therefore, the establishment of a cooperative is a step towards creating a
> viable local enterprise that may have more bargaining and purchasing power
> for its members which work towards poverty reduction objectives. As a
> group, cooperative members may be able to pay less for agricultural inputs
> and take over the processing of products to shorten the chain between the
> producer and the consumer.
>
> Cooperatives offer a way of reducing individual exposure to risk (from
> markets and climate, for instance) by using pooled resources and by
> increasing the possibility of securing insurance (e.g. indexed crop
> insurance) as a group – often a very difficult task for individual farmers
> who are credit-constrained. Cooperatives are important in the development
> of contract-agriculture and are increasingly being built into the business
> models for Corporate Social Responsibility
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Corporate_Social_Responsibility>
> projects[1]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-IFAD-0>.
>
>
> Furthermore, collective organisation around one issue at the community
> level can lead to increased participation in other areas of social
> development, such as access to land and land rights claims.
>
> Additionally, the education component inherent in farmer cooperative
> development can result in the adoption of more sustainable farming methods,
> including intercropping and crop rotation[1]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-IFAD-0>.
>
> Types of farmer cooperatives
>
> Agricultural cooperatives in rural areas are typically categorised
> according to the following activities, sometimes operating within all three
> areas:
>
>    - a) Production – farms are organised as corporations (the most common
>    form)
>    - b) Supply – purchase products, services and inputs for their members
>    - c) Service – a variety of services related to education, advice and
>    training
>
> In many developing countries, cooperatives are primarily village-based.
> Cooperatives begin at the local (community) level and as they grow, they
> can partner with neighbouring cooperatives to expand at the district and
> regional levels and advocate further up the chain, increasing political
> reach and clout[3]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-GEAC-2>.
>
> Women and Cooperatives
>
> In developing countries, women are responsible for roughly 60% of
> agricultural production. Nevertheless, women are still more constrained in
> terms of market and productive-asset access and land ownership[5]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-pinto-4>.
> Farmers cooperatives may offer opportunities to groups who might not
> otherwise be included in a local decision-making process, such as women or
> youth. In general terms, “gender equality means equality at all levels of
> education and in all areas of work, equal control over resources, and equal
> representation in public and political life”[6]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-radio-5>.
> In contexts where women do not own land, do not manage the farm or are not
> ‘responsible’ for the main cash crop, cooperatives encourage on-farm
> diversification activities to be undertaken by the woman that may then act
> as a supplement to household income when sold at market or used to produce
> other types of goods[6]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-radio-5>.
> Conversely, cooperatives provide female-headed households with equal access
> to productive resources, marketing opportunities and savings and credit
> services([7]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-6>
> ;[8]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-ILO-7>).
>
> A role for mobile technology and ICT development for farmer cooperatives
>
> Improving the quality and reach of ICTs (defined as the set of activities
> that facilitates the capturing, storage, processing, transmission and
> display of information by electronic means[9]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-Cecc-8>)
> for development as it relates to market price information, weather updates
> and micro-finance has huge potential in balancing the asymmetrical terms of
> trade and access to information constraints faced by many small-scale
> producers. This can stimulate entrepreneurship through improved connections
> to current market conditions [9]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-Cecc-8>.
>
>
> Mobile financing platforms such as the M-Pesa in Kenya or Smart Cards in
> Andhra Pradesh, India, extend banking services to clients via mobile
> transfers and accounts; this concept is being scaled-up to include
> small-scale insurance packages which can be extended to groups of farmers
> [10]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-9>.
>
> Risks faced by Farmer Cooperatives
>
>    - Increasing market linkages
>
> Increasing market linkages refers to intervening to develop markets for
> new agricultural products. The promotion of increased market linkages is a
> somewhat controversial topic in development circles primarily because of
> price volatility in the markets; this is particularly relevant for
> small-scale farmers who are not yet able to diversify their crops or
> sources of income and therefore can be more negatively affected by a price
> drop (i.e. they may not be able to recoup their investments and/or become
> indebted to a creditor). Since access to credit and inputs is essential for
> cooperatives, they can also become beholden to multiple micro-lenders and
> if there is a poor harvest or market failure, may be unable – even as a
> group – to repay money owed (See: Micro-finance page for further
> information)[8]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-ILO-7>).
>
>
>    - Political and/or Elite Capture
>
> In countries in Latin America and Central Asia, government has had a level
> of control over local cooperatives, utilising them as political platforms
> and reducing their function to an extension of the state[5]
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_note-pinto-4>.
> Elite capture refers to individuals or groups who have more power in the
> decision-making process and whose interests are given priority within a
> community at the expense of less influential groups.
> See More
>
>    - Farmer Cooperatives 'How-To' Guide
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives_%27How-To%27_Guide>
>    - Cooperatives
>    <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Cooperatives>
>    - Community Economic Development
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Community_Economic_Development>
>
> References
>
>    1. ↑ 1.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-IFAD_0-0>
>    1.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-IFAD_0-1>
>    1.2
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-IFAD_0-2>
>    IFAD, (2011), “Agricultural Cooperatives are key to reduce hunger and
>    poverty”, IFAD Rome, Accessed at: http://www.ifad.org/media/
>    press/2011/76.htm
>    2. ↑
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-1>
>    MIT, (2012), ‘Small Farm Cooperatives’, Mission 2014: Feeding the World,
>    Accessed at http://12.000.scripts.mit.edu/mission2014/solutions/small-
>    farm-cooperatives
>    3. ↑ 3.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-GEAC_2-0>
>    3.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-GEAC_2-1>
>    GEAC, (2009), ‘Guidelines for Establishing Agricultural Cooperatives’,
>    Accessed at www.doa.agric.za/
>    4. ↑
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-3>
>    Von Braun, J. (2008). Poverty, Climate Change, Rising Food Prices and the
>    Small Farmers. International Fund for Agricultural Development. Rome: 
> IFPRI.
>    5. ↑ 5.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-pinto_4-0>
>    5.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-pinto_4-1>
>    Pinto, A. Costa, (2009), ‘Agricultural Cooperatives and Farmers
>    Organisations: Role in Rural Development and Poverty Reduction’, Swedish
>    Cooperative Centre, Agricord Available: http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/
>    egms/docs/2009/cooperatives/Pinto.pdf
>    <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/egms/docs/2009/cooperatives/Pinto.pdf>
>    6. ↑ 6.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-radio_5-0>
>    6.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-radio_5-1>
>    Farm Radio, (2011), ‘ Gender mainstreaming in farmers’ cop-operative:
>    Groups in Ghana achieve food security for small-scale farmers’, Radio
>    Scripts, Package 94, Script 10, December 2011, Accessed at
>    http://www.farmradio.org/english/radio-scripts/94-10script_en.asp
>    <http://www.farmradio.org/english/radio-scripts/94-10script_en.asp>
>    7. ↑
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-6>
>    FAO, (2010), ‘Closing the Gender Gap’, SOFA 2010/2011 Report, Accessed at
>    http://www.fao.org/sofa/gender/en/ <http://www.fao.org/sofa/gender/en/>
>    8. ↑ 8.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-ILO_7-0>
>    8.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-ILO_7-1>
>    ILO, (2010), ‘Promising Practices: How cooperatives work for working 
> women
>    in Africa’, COOP Africa, International Labour Organisation
>    9. ↑ 9.0
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-Cecc_8-0>
>    9.1
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-Cecc_8-1>
>    Cecchini, S., and Scott, C., (2003), ‘Can information and communications
>    technology applications contribute to poverty reduction? Lessons from 
> rural
>    India’, Information Technology for Development, Vol. 10, pp. 73-84
>    10. ↑
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Farmer_Cooperatives#cite_ref-9>
>    Havemann T. ,(2011), ‘Financing mitigation in smallholder agricultural
>    systems Issues and Opportunities’, CCAFS Working Paper no. 6. CGIAR
>    Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security 
> (CCAFS).
>    Copenhagen, Denmark. Available online at: http://www.ccafs.cgiar.org
>
> External links
>
>    - Canadian Cooperative Association
>    
> <http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/orphan/The-Agricultural-Co-operative-Development-Initiative--Ag-CDI->
>    - IFAD <http://www.ifad.org/media/press/2011/76.htm>
>    - Agricultural Cooperatives Wikipedia Page
>    <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricultural_cooperative>
>    - FAO - Closing the Gender Gap in Agriculture
>    <http://www.fao.org/sofa/gender/en/>
>    - CGIAR <http://www.cgiar.org/index.html> (search 'cooperatives')
>
> Categories
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Special:Categories>:
>
>    - Agriculture
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Category:Agriculture>
>    - Community development
>    
> <http://www.entrepreneurstoolkit.org/index.php?title=Category:Community_development>
>
>


-- 
Lawrence F. London, Jr.
lfljvenaura@gmail.com
https://sites.google.com/site/avantgeared