Driven by Agriculture.

Inspired by Environment.

Strengthened by Community.

While the face of land ownership continues to

change, we believe that by working together with

the next generation of landowners, we can

accomplish a mutually beneficial way to optimize

ecological, economical, and societal impacts of

agricultural production.

The Holistic Producer Development Co-op has been created by

a progressive group of regenerative and holistically-minded

small family farmers, operating in a way that not only delivers

competitive market returns to landowners, but also optimizes

the positive ecological and sociological externalities from

grazing and data-driven agricultural production.

Lack of land access in an industry where bigger

producers are easily outcompeting smaller family

farms has created limited opportunities for young and

transitional producers to reach a scale necessary to

becoming economically profitable.

Our model is simple, and the solutions are many.

WHY GET INVOLVED?

In working together with shared inputs and overheads, producer co-ops

allow improved freedom, profitability and social viability in Rural America.

Our cooperative model allows young producers the opportunity to grow,

improve cash flows, improve grazing rotations on base-operation, and

improve herd-genetics for further sustainability and profitability within

their family operation.

A healthy, productive ecosystem and decreased reliance on expensive

machinery, labor, fuel, and chemicals are increasingly vital to the

continued success of family agricultural operations.

HOW A COOPERATIVE WORKS

A cooperative allows no less than five individuals to

share resources, inputs, risks, and overhead costs,

while focusing management disciplines to areas that

are best suited to experts or specialties.

Cooperatives allow independent operators to

outsource enterprises that would otherwise result in

economic loss, hindering the greater management of

their base operation.

“So whose money is it?”A cooperative doesn’t operate to generate profits for

the cooperative entity, instead, a cooperative is

considered an “agent” organization for its members.

Any funds handled through business activities never

belong to the co-op, but always belong to the members

(or “member owners” or “owners”).

“And who’s the boss?”Cooperatives are owned and managed democratically,

meaning it follows a “one member-one vote”

decision-making procedure. Every member’s vote holds

the same weight as another’s, regardless of his or her

level of patronage or equity claim to the cooperative’s

overall assets.

Cooperative Example A

A cooperative of livestock owners lease grazing land because together they are able to access a larger scale lease with more favorable terms than each can find independently.

The co-op pays the landowner and executes other lease business. Each member pays the co-op an animal unit rate just to cover the cost of the lease and any co-op direct expense. Each member pays per unit grazed and thus proportionally to use of service. In this simple scenario, no margin is realized, the co-op does not claim any of the member payments as income, members would not expect any patronage dividend, and the payment to the co-op would be a business expense for the member.

In this scenario, livestock owners organize a cooperative simply to access needed grazing land at a favorable rate.

Cooperative Example B

Cooperative in Example A is also able to secure a cash buyer for any quantified net soil carbon sequestration related to grazing management.

Any net margin that the co-op realizes after administering the soil carbon sale would be allocated (in this instance let’s say paid directly in cash) to each member proportionally to his or her patronage, or paid animal unit rate. The co-op does not recognize this margin as revenue and does not pay income tax on it, but each member must claim as income the cash patronage dividend. For this example, we can also introduce some equity investment in assets, such as fencing, and water development.

Many options exist for a co-op to cover the expense of assets including the sale of capital stock, conventional financing, or maybe the paid value of each member’s common stock share is available. It is feasible also that the asset expense is built into the animal unit lease rate and thus would be paid for proportionally. However, to illustrate the principle of proportional equity mentioned above, let’s assume the co-op expects new investment from member-owners to finance the assets. The principle would indicate that members finance the fencing and water development proportional to their patronage, or in this case his/ her relative number of animal units.

(It is worth mentioning that the proportional equity principle should not be viewed as a legal obligation, whereas the proportional allocation of patronage margins is).

The cooperative model we’ve developed can be incorporated in a variety of structures across the

country to form grass-roots, community-driven, working groups who have the need and see the

opportunity to achieve common goals in the working of lands, profitability of independent

producers, and the sustainability of small, rural communities and family businesses.

Simply put, we believe that if ruggedly independent cattle

producers can come together and make this work, any sector of the

agriculture economy can organize to make this work.

WHY CREATE A COOPERATIVE?

At its core definition, a cooperative 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.”

1. Self-Help: People may organize a co-op to provide a service or function that is

not otherwise being provided in their communities or for their enterprises.

2. Economy of Scale: An individual producer may not be able to readily access

market efficiencies independently but can collectively.

3. Vertical Integration: Together, individuals are able to add value to products or

otherwise access other sectors of the supply chain.

4. Ownership/Control: Members may find that cooperatively they can realize the

benefits of having an ownership stake in a service or market where otherwise they

may only be a customer or vendor.

5. Shared Risk: The capitalization and other risks of an enterprise may be more

palatable and attainable cooperatively versus independently.

6. Cultural Need: Organizers may recognize a cooperative as an opportunity to

democratize economic wealth and control within an economic sector that is

otherwise highly consolidated.

7. Marketability: The cooperative ownership structure in itself may add value to

a product.

A SOLUTION FOR MANY

Landowner BenefitsLandowners who are invested in their communities will find that a cooperative organization can

provide a particular service or function that is not currently being provided locally or for their

own enterprises. Partnering with a cooperative producer intent on utilizing land for the benefit of

agricultural endeavors can only benefit a landowner by improving overall land aesthetic and

property or asset value. Diverse, conscientious team members are coming together and working

towards a common vision that can only lead to healthy lands, healthy economic status, and

sustainable relationships and practices for years to come.

A SOLUTION FOR MANY

Individual Producer BenefitsPreviously unattainable operations due to limited economic, environmental or sociological constraints

are made possible through the production and utilization of resources made available by a partnership

with landowners sharing parallel goals of land stewardship and ecological health. The incorporation of

additional revenue streams will further economic benefit and operator profitability, and with the nature

of cooperative organizations, young or first-time producers will also have a sense of shared risk and

increase economy of scale when pooling resources together with other cooperative members.

A SOLUTION FOR MANY

Community BenefitsNeighboring communities will be witness to the benefit of having a successful cooperative in the ways

that previously unavailable goods become locally produced and attainable through local producers and

landowner collaboration. Numerous educational opportunities will rise from landowner/producer

partnerships including topics around young or first-time producers, advancements in agricultural and

land stewardship practices, and so much more.

A SOLUTION FOR MANY

Environmental BenefitsGrass banking and other models place an increased emphasis on the environmental duties of all parties

involved in the success of the cooperative. Through partnerships between producers and landowners, the

ecology of the land in use will see long-lasting positive impacts through sustainable, regenerative

agricultural practices. Producers will benefit from guaranteed access to healthy grasses grown in healthy

soil, and landowners will have the opportunity to collaborate with local individuals and communities

while maintaining a thriving ecological system within their lands.

If you’re interested in organizing a new chapter, please contact your

state’s Cooperative Development Service to begin the process of

forming your own Holistic Producer Development Cooperative.

For questions specific to HPDC, please contact the:

Montana Cooperative Development Center12 3rd St NW #110, Great Falls, MT 59404(406) 727-1517 | www.mcdc.coop

Montana Farmers Union300 River Dr N, Great Falls, MT 59403(406) 452-6406 | www.montanafarmersunion.com

For additional questions, don’t hesitate to reach me at:

P O W E R E D B Y