Coop Qualification & Business Model

1. Coop Qualification & Business Model

2. What businesses are coops? Ace Hardware  | Affiliated Foods Inc. | Affiliated Foods Midwest Co-op Inc. | Affiliated Foods Southwest | AgFirst Farm Credit Bank | Agribank, FCB | Ant Hill Cooperative | Associated Food Stores | Associated Grocers of Florida, Inc | Associated Grocers of the South, Inc. | Associated Grocers, Inc. | Associated Press | Associated Wholesale Grocers | Associated Wholesalers, Inc. | Audubon Mutual Housing Corporation | Basin Electric Power Cooperative | Black Star Co-op | Blue Diamond Growers | Brown Association for Cooperative Housing | Cabot Creamery | Central Grocers Cooperative | Certified Grocers Midwest | Choptank Electric Cooperative | CHS Inc. | CoBank | Cooperative Development Foundation | Dairy Farmers of America | Dairylea Cooperative Inc. | Diamond Walnut Growers, Inc. | Do It Best | Equal Exchange | Farm Credit Bank of Texas | First Tech Credit Union | Florida's Natural Growers| Florists' Transworld Delivery  | George Street Co-op | Great River Energy | Greenbelt Homes, Inc. | Greenbelt News Review | Group Health Cooperative | GROWMARK, Inc. | Inter-Cooperative Council at the University of Michigan | Land O'Lakes | Madison Community Co-op | MFA Incorporated | Michigan State University Student Housing Cooperative | National Cooperative Bank  | National Grape Cooperative Association, Inc. | Navy Federal Credit Union | New Deal Cafe| New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union| Nebraska Rural Radio Association | NonProfits' United | Northcountry Cooperative Development Fund | Oberlin Student Cooperative Association | Ocean Spray | Oglethorpe Power Corporation | Old Dominion Electric Cooperative | Park Slope Food Coop | Pentagon Federal Credit Union | People's Food Co-op | Piggly Wiggly | Pioneer Telephone Cooperative  | Pioneer Telephone Cooperative  | R.E.I. (Recreational Equipment Inc.) |Rapidan Camps |Riceland Foods | Scary Cow Productions | Snake River Sugar Company | Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative | Southern States Cooperative | Sunkist Growers, Inc. | Tennessee Farmers Cooperative | The Union Credit Union | Tillamook County Creamery Association | TOPCO Associates | True Value Corporation | U.S. AgBank, FCB | U.S. Central Credit Union| Unified Western Grocers | USA Federal Credit Union  | United Hardware Distributing Company (Hardware Hank) | Universal Cooperatives | University Students Cooperative Association | URM Stores | VHA, Inc. | Wakefern Food (ShopRite) | Weaver's Way Co-op | Weaver Street Market | Wedge Community Co-op | Western Family Holding Company | Western Sugar Cooperative | WestFarm Foods | Wheatsville Co-op | Winfield Park Mutual Housing Corporation | WSIPC

3. Why do they qualify? • Cooperatives are based on the cooperative values of : • Self-help • Self-responsibility • Democracy and equality • Equity and solidarity"

4. They also have: • Voluntary and Open Membership • Democratic Member Control • Member Economic Participation • Autonomy and Independence • Education, Training and Information • Cooperation among Cooperatives • Concern for Community

5. How does your cooperative fit these principles? • Voluntary and Open Membership • Democratic Member Control • Member Economic Participation • Autonomy and Independence • Education, Training and Information • Cooperation among Cooperatives • Concern for Community

6. How do coops benefit the community? • Provide common service • Join in common interest • Reduce cost of goods and production • Develop business relationships • Provide member benefits • Balance reputation and provide competition

7. Question! • What other ways to cooperatives benefit the community?

8. Question! • How do cooperatives benefit the industry with which they are involved?

9. Question! • How does your cooperative benefit the community and industry with which it would be involved?

10. Movie! • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqwk1QvoXHQ

11. Writing: • If you could design a coop in a foreign country, which country would you choose and what type of service would you provide? • How would this benefit the members and how would you gain members?