A national survey conducted by the National Cooperative Business Association in Washington D.C. identified cooperatives as a form of business that people trust. Why? Because cooperatives are owned and controlled by the people they serve.

Examples of this unique form of business are GROWMARK, Inc., local FS cooperatives and the IAA Federal Credit Union.

During times of challenge and change, it is refreshing to know that we can be part of business where "members" own and control the business.

How do members control their cooperative? They elect the board, usually at its annual meeting. The board hires the manger, sets the policy within which the cooperative operates and makes all major financial decisions.

How do members own their cooperative? To use local FS companies as an example, most ownership today is in the form of "patronage stock" that members receive as part of the distribution of earnings for business done with the cooperative.

In the American private enterprise system, cooperatives are one of three types of businesses. They are Individually owned businesses like many farms today, partnerships, and corporations of which there are two kinds: Investor owned corporations like General Motors, and cooperative corporations like your local FS cooperative.

Examples of products marketed by cooperatives for the producers they serve are: Prairie Farms ice cream, Sunkist oranges, Ocean Spray cranberry juice, Sun-Maid raisins, Lindsay olives and Blue Diamond almonds. Members own the cooperatives that market these products. As a consumer, you probably identify these brands as the best you can buy. Cooperatives are truly a kind of business you can trust.