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N.D. (NewsDakota.com) Governor Jack Dalrymple proclaimed October as “Co-op Month” at an official proclamation signing event in Bismarck. The proclamation recognizes the valuable contributions that cooperatives bring to North Dakota.
Each October, Co-op Month provides an opportunity to educate the community about co-ops, and promote the business model as a tool for building a thriving economy.
The theme identified by the National Co-operative Business Association (NCBA) for 2015 is “Building a Better World with Businesses You Trust.” This basic message is a reminder of the many ways that co-ops enable people to work together to build businesses that are rooted in and accountable to their communities.
Cooperatives are created by people who join together to solve a problem or meet a need. Co-ops are owned and democratically controlled by their patrons.
Education is one of the seven principles that guide all cooperatives, so members are encouraged to actively participate in setting policies and making decisions for their co-op.
From attending an annual meeting to serving on the co-op’s board of directors, people who belong to cooperatives can have a real stake in their economic destiny.
While many businesses are strictly motivated by profit, cooperatives exist first and foremost to deliver quality goods and services to their members. Cooperatives put people ahead of profits. Cooperative earnings are returned to members through improved services, lower prices or patronage.
Adaptable and time tested, cooperatives are everywhere and operate in every industry including agriculture, energy, financial services, food retail and distribution, health care, child care, insurance, housing, purchasing and shared services, telecommunications and more.
Cooperatives also come in all sizes, from small buying clubs to businesses included in the Fortune 500. Many cooperatives are household names like Land O’Lakes, Ocean Spray, Sunkist, ACE Hardware, Nationwide Insurance and the Associated Press.
A 2011 economic impact study by the Quentin Burdick Center for Cooperatives at North Dakota State University found that over 330 businesses operating in North Dakota identified themselves as cooperatives. Besides their economic output, these state cooperatives provided over $215 million in jobs, wages and tax revenue.
