JUNE 1996
Over 4,000 Join
New Wheat
Co-op; CEO Search Begins
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Prairie Grains is the
official publication of
the Minnesota
Association of
Wheat Growers,
North Dakota Grain Growers Association,
South Dakota Wheat,
Inc., and the
Minnesota Barley
Growers Association.
By the sign-up deadline, 4,320 farmers had committed to the co-op by contributing $200 each in seed money. The final number far exceeds the group's original goal of attracting 2,000 to 3,000 farmers, and has USWP on its way to becoming the largest grower-owned processing cooperative in the Northern Plains.
USWP's next step is to hire a chief executive officer, and in keeping pace with that goal, its executive committee in May employed the services of Robert Connelly & Associates, Minneapolis, to begin a CEO search. Robert Connelly & Associates has 27 years of experience in the search process, and has American Crystal Sugar among its clients.
In addition to hiring a CEO, USWP has been and will continue to conduct customer-specific market analysis. Work also continues on clearing a state securities law which would allow spring wheat farmers in Montana to join USWP.
United Spring Wheat Processors was legally formed on March 6, 1996 to unite the region's spring wheat growers in developing a large-scale, value-added project. In March and April, USWP organizers held about 50 meetings throughout the tri-state region (one of them, at Flom, MN, is pictured here, with USWP chair and Hillsboro, N.D. grower Mike Warner at the podium), inviting growers to participate in the co-op by contributing a seed money payment which will convert to membership stock once the grower invests $4,800 in contributed capital to USWP this fall.
Those funds will be placed in escrow, with interest earned invested in market research, a CEO, and a business plan. USWP will bring a project proposal forward to members prior to Sept. 30, 1999, at which time growers have the option to invest or have their $4,800 refunded.
"The high level of participation in USWP tells us that the timing is right for this effort, and we intend to move the project forward efficiently and expediently," says Warner.