Our Farm Cooperative – how does it work?

So how does this all work?

This is a common and excellent question.

While some worker-owned cooperatives, intentional communities and co-housing communities may have a shared ethos of cooperation and consensus, no two entities are exactly alike.

So let’s try to break down what ours is all about.

Our farm cooperative involves three key areas:

• Farmland Access
• Business Partnership
• An Eco-Village Plot

New members come in by buying into the cooperative. They get an equal share of the farm land and all its common buildings, that is deeded to the cooperative.

Members get equal profit sharing from our existing business, plus any new operations created, that is prorated by the contributions they put into it.

This is to accommodate members who may only want to work or farm part-time. Perhaps one spouse has an off-farm career and the other spouse works at the cooperative full-time. This also allows for new operations, vegetable production for example, to take root by members who have the desire to bring that to reality.

Members bring their skill sets but also get to follow their passions to contribute to the overall business. Team leaders and operations teams will need to be created.

This is not to say that we won’t have days where everyone needs to come together to help harvest tomatoes before a storm, for example.

Also, farms don’t need farmers only – they also need accountants, bookkeepers, marketers, email newsletter writers, photographers, etc…

So I make this point because one may see this farming cooperative as an endeavor only for the youth. Not at all!

Retirees, couples that wish to downsize – all ages are welcome who want to bring their talents to the cooperative.

In this cooperative, what I will harp on the most is value-added foods. We have two commercial kitchens as well and a retail store. So the opportunities for cooking, jarring, canning, bottling, fermenting, etc… is absolutely available.

Lastly, we need to talk about a place for all of our members to live on the farm.

Every member will be leased (99 year) a plot land (100′ x 100′) from the cooperative in the eco-village.

I have designated an area that is least desirable for agricultural purposes but best suited for homesites, with southern exposure for solar, good drainage, access to the grid and a shared driveway from the road.

Although the land is leased and there will be architectural guidelines on the size of the home that will need conforming to, any structure that a member builds on their leased plot is their property. The house you build is your own. It is the only thing not shared in this cooperative.

This is because should a member need to leave for whatever reason, they can sell their home to a new member for fair market value – thereby recouping their costs and equity as you would in normal real estate circumstances.

We will ask that the farm cooperative gets first right of refusal on buying the house if a member leaves. And also any new member coming in to the cooperative that is buying the house will need to be vetted by the cooperative.

The initial feedback has been great and we’ve already had some requests for more info.

Of course this is a long-term project, but I feel it’s the right one for us.

If you like to learn more about joining our cooperative, please let us know: