Minnesota is land of large co-ops; CHS, Land O'Lakes top list

Minnesota has strengthened its title as the king of the cooperatives. A new ranking again lists CHS Inc.

[IrishMN]

We need to dump these large corporate farms that rape our land and rob our purses.

We all need to return to local sustainable farming. Live where it was grown and without cancer causing additives or pesticides.

Bush and his buddies were always taking contributions from Big Food. And then handing them huge checks that would help to put family farms out of business.

We need to get back to our heritage of small family farms again.

[JP - St Paul]

IrishMN wrote:

Bush and his buddies were always taking contributions from Big Food. And then handing them huge checks that would help to put family farms out of business.
We need to get back to our heritage of small family farms again.

It is bigger than that. Not only have our nation's policies diminished family farms but small businesses in general were not encouraged, in any practical sense, by the Bush administration. Once this health care bill gets passed, I hope the Obama administration can do more to encourage the sustainability and innovation of our nation's small businesses - including the family farm.

[John]

What in the hell do your rants have to do with the story?
The story, in case you can't read, is about 'co-ops', which by the very definition aren't 'corporate' farms.
Plus, if you don't mind paying $12 for a head of lettuce, then by all means, lets return to the family farm.

[IrishMN]

John wrote:

What in the hell do your rants have to do with the story?
The story, in case you can't read, is about 'co-ops', which by the very definition aren't 'corporate' farms.
Plus, if you don't mind paying $12 for a head of lettuce, then by all means, lets return to the family farm.

The point is that this is Big Business. You can call it what you want, but it is Big Business and Big Corporate Farms.

This is what has helped destroy the family farm over the years. And Bushco & Friends were behind this destruction.

[John]

No IrishMN, it wasn't Buchco and Friends that destroyed the family farm. I'm no fan of former President Bush, but lets put the blame where it squarely belongs, on the consumer. It was a simple economy of scale. The consumers demanded cheap food, small farms couldn't meet that demand, larger operators could. Before you know it, it wasn't cost effective to run a 40 or 80 acre farm. You needed 400 or 800 acres.(This is simplifying matters some) In addition to the consumer demand small farmers got hit with farming crisis in the 80's. The crisis was a result of many things, not the least of which was some very poor choices by many of the farmer in the form of over leveraging their property.
At any rate, co-ops are made up of individual (re: non corporate) farmers. They may not be the 40 acre operation that they were 50 years ago but they are still 'Family Farms'.

[The Golf Guy]

This is a mean story, Mn, land of large cops.

[CareLes]

John wrote:

Plus, if you don't mind paying $12 for a head of lettuce, then by all means, lets return to the family farm.

Pay for lettuce? no, IrishMN wants everyone to grow their own.

Les

[CareLes]

IrishMN wrote:

We need to dump these large corporate farms that rape our land and rob our purses.
We all need to return to local sustainable farming. Live where it was grown and without cancer causing additives or pesticides.
Bush and his buddies were always taking contributions from Big Food. And then handing them huge checks that would help to put family farms out of business.
We need to get back to our heritage of small family farms again.

Yea ... when are you gonna buy yer farm there IrishMN?

Les

[CareLes]

IrishMN wrote:

<quoted text>
The point is that this is Big Business. You can call it what you want, but it is Big Business and Big Corporate Farms.
This is what has helped destroy the family farm over the years. And Bushco & Friends were behind this destruction.

The point is that the Co-Ops are owned by the partons.

The only was small farmers can stay in business is to own, operate, buy from, and sell to Co-Ops.

Take away the Co-Op and you'll kill the small farmer.

Les

[MNCyclone]

IrishMN wrote:

We need to dump these large corporate farms that rape our land and rob our purses.
We all need to return to local sustainable farming. Live where it was grown and without cancer causing additives or pesticides.
Bush and his buddies were always taking contributions from Big Food. And then handing them huge checks that would help to put family farms out of business.
We need to get back to our heritage of small family farms again.

Get your facts right jacka$z. Did you even read the article? They are coops of independent farms that actually own the coop and get a share of the profit. You were so anxious to dump on evil big business that you didn’t even bother to understand the truth.

Your utopian idea of farming sounds great, except for the fact that millions of people around the world will starve because of reduced output. Most of these would be in poor countries without a strong agricultural system. Great idea hippy!

[Mike]

A lot of farmers are still trying to figure out what "sustainable" farming is, we farm year after year and are able to sustain ourselves best we can, but with the input cost so high and the crop prices so low it's hard to make much of a profit.
Thank god there are still a lot of co-op's around not as many as years ago, I can still remember when good old Jimmy Carter was going to help out the farmers, those that were dumb enough to buy into it all went under, that was the biggest blow the smaller farmers got hit with over the years..
And then you have the weather, most of the guy's have not got the beans out of the fields yet, we normally would be doing corn right now but the fields are so wet I am going to have to wait for a good freeze before I dare to drive the combine in the field..
Remember to say sieg heil to the nobama, we will be lucky to survive this one, I am sure ADM and the other large companies will do just fine, like they usually do..