Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012 17

Co-operatives

CO-OPERATIVE and mutual businessesplay a significant role in the NewZealand economy with $39.4 billion

of combined revenues in 2010/11 from theTop 40 New Zealand co-operatives andmutuals.

Fonterra, with 10,500 farmer members,has annual revenue of $19.8 billion and isNew Zealand’s only truly global business.The three Foodstuffs co-operatives(Auckland, Wellington and South Island)have a combined turnover of $8 billion,making them together the third largestbusiness in the country.

In terms of the Top 40 Co-operatives,Dunedin-based meat processing co-opera-tive Silver Fern Farms is fifth with $2 billionand provides 7500 jobs, while further south

the Invercargill-based meat co-operativeAlliance Group is sixth largest with rev-enues of $1.5 billion and providing 5600jobs.

These six New Zealand co-ops are in theglobal 300 list of the world’s largest co-operatives.

Big rural lender, Netherlands-basedRabobank, is a co-operative and theworld’s largest rural bank and a major agri-cultural sector lender in New Zealand. Withover $1 billion in assets, Rabobank’s AAcredit rating is up there with both the gov-ernments of New Zealand and Australia.

Collectively, New Zealand co-operativesand mutuals provide more than 43,000Kiwis with jobs. But not all are based in therural heartland.

With vehicle repair shops as its mem-bers, Capricorn Society has members inNew Zealand, Australia and South Africa -truly a tri-nations co-operative - with aturnover of more than $1 billion.

Started in 1928 and now with 137,000members, The Co-operative Bank has thelargest number of members of all NewZealand cooperatives. Collectively, co-oper-atives contribute three per cent of NewZealand’s GDP.

On a global footing, co-operatives world-wide are owned by one billion people andemploy over 100 million.

The biggest 300 co-operatives have acombined turnover of $1.9 trillion and areas large as Spain, the world’s ninth largesteconomy.

BOASTING more than 40 co-operatively-owned busi-nesses, Ashburton, on SH1

and the Mid-Canterbury rural hin-terland, has been crowned the“Co-operative Capital of NewZealand”.

The NZ Co-operativesAssociation has awardedAshburton the Co-operativeCapital title as part of the UnitedNations 2012 International Year ofCo-operatives.

Co-operative Association chair-person Blue Read saysAshburton’s co-operatives pro-vide for virtually every farming,business and household require-ment a community could everwant or need.

Local farmer Jack Allan is aFonterra milk supplier and a for-mer chairman of the AshburtonTrading Society, now brandedATS. He likes the idea of Mid-Canterbury and Ashburton beingbranded the co-operative capital.

“Just look at what co-operativeshave done for the region andeven nationally.” Mr Allan said.

“Co-operatively-owned buyinggroups like ATS have been thecatalyst for competitive prices inthe rural supplies sector for theentire Canterbury Province andeven further afield.”

“When ATS started we didn’tadvertise for members. Farmerssaw the benefits and just joined.Most farmers would haverecouped their membership feewith their first fertiliser order,” hesaid.

“For farming to be successfulwe rely on keeping our costs incheck and maximising the sale ofwhat we produce.”

Co-operatives are more prolificin rural areas, which is put downto the community knowing theirneighbours and a greater readi-ness in the country to help eachother out.

The co-opcapital of New Zealand

United effort for a better futureTHIS year is the United Nations International Year

of Cooperatives. The contribution of co-opera-tives to the New Zealand economy is huge.

They range from a co-operative of travel retailerswith around 20 members, through the dairy co-opFonterra, which is by far the country’s largest com-mercial business with 10,500 farmer members, to a co-operative bank which has a little under 130,000 mem-bers.

For the year 2010-11, the 40 largest co-operativesand mutuals in New Zealand had a collectiveturnover/revenue of more than $39 billion, and repre-sented just under 10 per cent of theDeloitte/Management magazine list of New Zealand’s200 largest businesses.

The country’s six largest co-operatives are to befound in the International Co-operative AllianceGlobal 300 list of the world’s 300 largest co-ops andmutuals.

Co-operatives are responsible for three per cent ofGDP, and while they employ 43,000 people directly,employment by the farms and shops that are co-opmembers is well into six figures.

To say that co-operative and mutual business isimportant here is an understatement.

Member-owned businesses whose membershipshares are not traded on the stock exchange, somekeep a low profile.

An increasing number, though, are seeing that beinga co-operative or a mutual is an advantage to beactively promoted, and do so.

Research conducted for the Co-operativesAssociation by Horizon Poll showed that 70 per centof New Zealanders are now “less trusting” or “totallydistrusting” of the honesty and integrity of businessesafter recent finance company failures.

Major contributors to local and global economies

Dr Paul Hutchison, left, MP for Hunua (National), and Ramsey Margolis,executive director of New Zealand Co-operatives Association, at the GrantHall, Parliament, during the New Zealand launch of the International Year ofCo-operatives.

INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012 INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES18

Origin Agroup

ORIGIN AGROUP is a farm machineryco-operative established by a groupof independent farm machinery

retailers throughout New Zealand whichimports and distributes farm machinery toits member shareholders.

After only eight years of operation,Origin Agroup has experienced formidablegrowth and has firmly positioned itself andits products on the market.

This rapid growth and expansion wouldnot have been achieved by any other busi-ness model, believes David Donnelly, man-aging director. “Quite simply, our successis contributed to the fact we adopted a co-operative business model with co-opera-tive principles and along with a constitu-tion, which fairly represents the sharehold-er members interests.”

“It was a logical decision,” says David,“to provide the industry with an alternativesupply of farm machinery products andservices to the market which in the pastwas dominated by larger private and publiccompany’s which controlled the distribu-tion chain too much and did not look afterits retailers or customers.

“We are smaller and more adaptable andwe pride ourselves on listening to our cus-tomers and reacting more quickly,” saysDavid. “Not only do we provide our mem-bers with an exclusive range of productsbut we share our profits more fairly andthis benefits both our member and theircustomer.

“A co-operative business is just that, acompany co-operating with people for acommon interest; co-operatives haveproven to be a successful business modelaround the world and is particularly strongin rural economies as farmers have a longhistory of participating in cooperatives,”says David.

“We knew that simply starting up a newcompany to import farm machinery and

introduce new products to the marketwould be difficult so we needed a point ofdifference that would benefit both the farmmachinery retailer and their customers andthe co-operative model has achieved that.”

Origin Agroup distributes many success-fully recognised European brands ofmachinery including Pottinger cultivation,seeding and harvesting equipment; Alpegopower harrows, rotary hoes, mulchers,

seed drills, and sub-soilers; DAL-BOCambridge rollers and Disc harrows; Maniptractor front-end loaders; Bogballe fertiliserspreaders; Hatzenbichler air seeders andharrows; and Tatoma diet mixer wagons.These brands provide our members with acompetitive range of quality products withthe security in knowing that these prod-ucts are only available exclusively forresale by members.

NZ’s only farm machinery co-operativeOrigin Agroup managing director David Donnelly believes the key to theirsuccess has been the fact they listen to their customers.

SEE ONE OF OUR COOPERATIVE MEMBERS FOR YOUR NEXT FARM MACHINE PURCHASE!KAITAIA: KAITAIA TRACTORS (09) 408 0670 DARGAVILLE: KAIPARA AGRI CENTRE: (09) 439 6544 WHANGAREI: BRYANT TRACTORS: (09) 438 1319

PAEROA: PIAKO TRACTORS: (07) 862 9064 MORRINSVILLE: PIAKO TRACTORS (07) 889 7055 ROTORUA: PIAKO TRACTORS (07) 345 8560

NEW PLYMOUTH: A.M.T (06) 758 2274 STRATFORD: FIELD TORQUE TARANKAI LTD (06 765 8643 HAWERA: A.M.T (06) 278 5119

WAIPUKURAU: STEVENSON & TAYLOR (06) 858 6041 PALMERSTON NORTH: TRANSAG CENTRE (06) 354 7164

MASTERTON: WAIRARAPA MACHINERY SERVICES LTD: (06) 377 3009 NELSON: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 543 8041

BLENHEIM: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 579 1111 KAIKOURA: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 319 7119

ASHBURTON: COCHRANES OF CANTERBURY (03) 307 8027 GREYMOUTH: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 768 5116

AMBERLEY: COCHRANES OF CANTERBURY (03) 314 9055 LEESTON: COCHRANES OF CANTERBURY (03) 324 3791

TIMARU: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 687 4005 OAMARU: GORDON HANDY MACHINERY (03) 437 1111

MOSGIEL: J.J. LTD. (03) 489 8199 GORE: J.J. LTD. (03) 203 9970 INVERCARGILL: J.J. LTD. (03) 211 0013

ALL OTHER AREAS: ORIGIN AGROUP LTD: 07 823 7582

Providing you with quality farm machinery with cooperative service and cooperative deals.We are NZ’s ONLY farm machinery Cooperative!

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES 19

Birchwood

IN an industry dominated bylarge players, a 25-year-oldKatikati kiwifruit co-operative

is proud to be small.Birchwood Packhouse Ltd

believes “small is best” when itcomes to giving service to itsgrowers and shareholders.

However, “small” is a relativeterm because last seasonBirchwood packed close to 1.4million trays and in 2007 and2008 built two state of the art400,000 tray coolstores to fur-ther expand the capacity for on-site coolstorage.

In 2008, its packhouse wasrenovated and today its four-lane grader works at efficiencylevels equivalent to a six-laneversion. The facility can com-fortably handle up to 1.6 milliontrays of green, gold and newvarieties.

General manager Karen Rochesays Birchwood has enduredwhere other smaller companieshave not because of the resultsit achieves for growers, its co-operative structure and theforesight of its board of direc-tors.

Birchwood was founded in1987 by four growers who com-bined resources to pack theirfruit. In 1994, Birchwood waspurchased by its grower clientsand became registered as a co-operative in 1997.

“We remain a co-operative butwhile new members are wel-come, it is not necessary to jointhe co-op to pack with us,” saysgrower liaison Jane Wordley.Having said that, the vast major-ity of the packhouse throughputis from shareholders’ crop, andthose growers have enjoyedhealthy rebates in all but threeyears of the co-op’s history. “Itis our reason for being - to pro-vide the best possible returns to

our grower shareholders.”In 2006, the company sought a

cornerstone investor to enableit to expand and upgrade facili-ties and DMS Progrowers Ltdnow has a 25 per cent share-holding.

Operations manager DavidWright says that investmentenabled the construction of thehigh tech coolstores which usean energy efficient water defrostsystem.

“With the new coolstores weare well placed to handle newvarieties because we have multi-ple rooms which can be run atdifferent temperatures to suitthe fruit.”

Currently the majority of thecrop the facility packs is greenkiwifruit with 15 per cent goldHort16A and around 10 per cent

new varieties - although thisratio is bound to change infuture years

Most of its suppliers havebeen with the company foryears and the same is true ofthe packhouse staff, many ofwhom return season after sea-son to work in the facility whichhas a reputation for its friendly“family” atmosphere. “Everyyear our motorhome workersarrive and camp on site and aswell as local people, we alsomake sure we have jobs forbackpackers from around theworld,” says Karen.

Whilst Birchwood’s total sup-ply base stretches fromHikutaia, south of Thames, toWhakamarama, north ofTauranga, most orchards areconcentrated around the

Katikati district. It also managesand leases properties andapproximately one third of itsthroughput is from theseorchards. The facility respond-ed early to the outbreak of thedeadly bacterial disease Psaand has invested in a truckwash and a bin sanitisation sys-tem. All staff and contractorsmust now adhere to strict biose-curity protocols on entering andleaving orchards.

“This is a very anxious timefor growers and everyone con-nected to the industry,” saysKaren.

“Psa is taking a massive toll inBay of Plenty orchards, and nowour hearts go out to growers inthe Waikato and Coromandelregions that have, up until veryrecently, been clear of the dis-

ease. We wonder if people out-side of the kiwifruit industryhave a real understanding of thedevastation that is occurring topeople’s livelihoods and theflow on effect this will have oncommunities and towns withinthe growing regions.

“We do all however, realisehow fortunate we are to be partof such a cohesive industry -the New Zealand kiwifruit com-munity has always had a co-operative mindset but in recenttimes has really pulled together.The level of support for growersand the magnitude of the scien-tific effort going into this is real-ly heartening. Here atBirchwood, all focus is on pru-dent financial management andbeing here for our shareholdersinto the future.”

PACKHOUSE LTD

Small is best when delivering quality

a partner you can trust

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012 INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES20

RavensdownEVERY year is an internation-

al year of the co-operativefor NZ-based Ravensdown,

which is a silver sponsor of theUN initiative.

Nearly all transaction-based co-operatives are based in a singlecountry, but Ravensdown isunusual in that it was invited intoAustralia, so is truly a trans-Tasman group.

Increasing Australian sales ledto the co-operative breakingthough the billion-dollar salesbarrier for the first time this year.

“But more importantly, we putthat scale to use by shieldingshareholders from the worst ofworld price volatility for prod-ucts such as urea,” Ravensdownchairman Bill McLeod said atSeptember’s AGM.

This month, Ravensdown paysout $53.5 million back to farmersin the form of rebates and bonusshares at a time when payoutsare in question. “New Zealandfarmers have come to depend onthis equity, as Ravensdown haspaid a rebate every year since itsformation 34 years ago,” addedBill.

“Over in Queensland, it’s likethe early days of co-operatives inNew Zealand because there is somuch enthusiasm for the co-oper-ative idea. Over there, they haveseen their different co-ops getsnapped up by corporates and,for years, they felt prices wereloaded towards paying those cor-porate companies’ dividends.Four years ago, they askedRavensdown to go over, paid upfront for all the set up and arenow appreciating the differenceof owning their fertiliserprovider,” said Bill.

“In Queensland, it was a case ofthem not knowing what they haduntil it was gone. Thankfully, theco-operative movement in ruralNZ is going strong. Even thoughthe NZ Co-operative Associationfigures showed that co-operativesdirectly employ 43,000 people,there is a risk that co-operativesare taken for granted. So initia-tives like the International Year ofthe Co-operative are great forpolicy makers, media and generalpublic to see the contribution.”

“As we look ahead beyond thisUN-marked year, the future isbright for rural co-operatives

who will continue to contributethe bottom line of NZ Inc at atime of global financial uncertain-ty. For Ravensdown, it will be anexciting year ahead with ourSmart Nutrients toolbox helpingmore farmers head off strict regu-lation and minimise their environ-mental footprint, increasing useof technology such as interactivefarm maps and of course a newChief executive Greg Campbellstarting in January,” added Bill.

“Our shareholders own assetsas varied as a topdressing air-craft maintenance shop, state-of-the-art mass spectrometers andan acid plant generating enoughelectricity to power a small town.Each of these parts of the busi-ness is profitable and, at AGMslike this one, shareholders enjoyhearing how the pieces of the jig-saw add up to bring value.”

“For an inputs co-operative likeRavensdown, it’s all about thesupply chain - we focus on secur-ing nutrients supply from placeslike Canada, Russia and Vietnamand storing or delivering them ina way so that the farmer canfocus on what they do best.There are definitely efficienciesfor all of us when the ships trans-porting to and from NZ can alsostop along the Australian coast,”concluded Bill.

Listening and supporting Over the dining room table, a

Fielday sausage, a shareholderdinner or a yarn over the phone,shareholders know theirRavensdown team is there forthem.

Our customers are our ownersFounded by farmers for a fairer

deal on their fertiliser, theRavensdown co-operative contin-ues to innovate. Shareholderscan be confident that their keyinputs are sourced at lowest sus-tainable cost and that prices aretransparent.

Our board is appointed demo-cratically by farmers. We conductregular surveys and act on thefeedback. We take pride when

things go right and if things gowrong we put them right. Ourteams and some of our share-holders talk of “having green intheir blood” - a loyalty which isbased on years of integrity andtrust.

Our people are the difference Ravensdown invests in training

its people and transferring knowl-edge to a new generation ofemployees. All account managersundergo a rigorous training pro-gramme attending courses onintermediate and advanced sus-

tainable nutrient management,understanding herbicides andruminant animal health atMassey University. Other externaltraining includes Arable 101 atLincoln. All our account man-agers go through comprehensiveinternal training and a two-weekintensive programme supervisedby our chief scientific officer AntsRoberts.

Our farming community needsour support

Ravensdown has been a keysponsor of the National Young

Farmer Contest for 26 years cele-brating the next generation ofagricultural leaders.

Through our Hugh WilliamsScholarship we also help to sup-port the leaders emerging fromagricultural studies from Lincolnand Massey universities. We alsorun scholarships with ParininihiKi Waitotara, Atihau and MangatuBlocks Incorporation.

Ravensdown also supportsexcellence in farming by sponsor-ing:

* New Zealand Dairy IndustryAwards and the South Island

Silver sponsor proud of co-op

A shareholder who joined 10 years ago and bought

OWN THE DIFFERENCE

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES 21

Ravensdown

Dairying Development Centre; * Pasture Renewal Charitable

Trust, NZ Grassland Association;* Foundation for Arable

Research;* Federated Farmers and Ewe

and Hogget Awards;* South Island Farmer of the

Year.Being a shareholder Being a shareholder means

more than an annual rebatewhich adds up each year. It’sabout easy access to a team youknow is working for farmers likeyou.

Ravensdown offers valuethrough product offers and dis-counts on services such as soiltesting.

In a world of financial uncer-tainty, the enduring equitygrowth of being part of this co-operative continues to appeal toshareholders.

While a personalised websitewon’t replace face-to-face or overthe phone communications, farm-ers tell us that it is useful to haveall their maps, fertiliser plans,application records and archivesall in one place.

Ravensdown worked with farm-ers to design the new features ofthe MyRavensdown secure web-site, so that documents like state-ments and invoices are shownthe way farmers need them. Weare the first co-operative tolaunch “live help” for farmerswhich allows users to get instanthelp from one of our trainedCustomer Centre team.

A shareholder who joined in2001 and bought 50 tonnes of fer-tiliser each year would haveended up with $11,580 from aninitial $100 outlay

Ravensdown first fertiliser com-pany to break billion dollar mile-stone

Ravensdown, the 100 per centfarmer-owned co-operative, has

become the first New Zealand fer-tiliser company to surpass a bil-lion dollars in revenue. The co-operative also helped shieldshareholders from world pricevolatility for imports such as

urea for a large part of the report-ing period.

Revenues for the year to May31, 2012, were a record $1.07 bil-lion, an increase of 15 per cent.The co-operative plans to distrib-ute $53.5 million to shareholders.This represents a total of $40.48per tonne of fertiliser purchasedwhich is made up of a rebate of$15.10 per tonne plus a bonusshare issue of 17 shares pertonne (tax paid) valued at $25.38per tonne.

Operating profit was $51.8 mil-lion compared with a record$71.6 million the year before.Total assets grew significantly to$869.8 million, an increase of$83.6 million.

“Ravensdown saw strong rev-enue growth in the past financialyear and delivered a sizeableprofit to return to its sharehold-ers for the 35th consecutive yearsince farmers created their co-operative. Investment in ourstores and manufacturing infra-structure is paying off, sales inAustralia increased by 16 percent and all our New Zealandbusiness units are making a prof-it,” chairman Bill said.

“We supplied 1.56 million

tonnes of fertiliser to farmers inthe year which is marginally upon last year. Fertiliser revenueswere up due to the highly volatileworld prices for products such asurea. The profits from urea wereconstrained as Ravensdown heldthe price at a constant $798 pertonne for nine months of thefinancial year,” he said.

Contained within the profitnumber is Ravensdown’s pendinginsurance payout of $10.9 millionfor earthquake damage to theHornby manufacturing plant. Inaddition to this, Ravensdown hasreceived $3.6 million from insur-ers to carry out urgent earth-quake-related repairs.

“Given the size and significanceof a farm’s investment in its soilfertility, it was no surprise to seeour cutting-edge laboratory ARLprocess record test numbers.These test results underpin ouradvice and drive accurate nutri-ent management planning. Whencombined with Ravensdown’sprecise spreading technologiesand patented eco-n to help limitnitrate leaching, farmers haveproven ways to raise productionand reduce their environmentalfootprint,” Bill said.

p record

For a fertile future

Call 0800 100 123 or visit www.ravensdown.co.nz to find out the benefits of buying direct from a 100%

farmer-owned co-operative.

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012 INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES22

Coural

COURAL (Rural Couriers SocietyLtd) is a co-operative company,owned by independent rural

delivery contractors throughout NewZealand.

These rural delivery contractors (num-bering about 550 nationally, who alsodeliver for New Zealand Post) provide anational network servicing nearly 220,000rural residents and businesses for thedelivery of parcels, unaddressed circu-lars, and non-subscription newspapers.

In addition to this work, they rely onother revenue to protect their independ-ent status, and also the sometimes sub-stantial goodwill they have paid for theirdelivery businesses.

Thirty-two years ago, these RD con-tractors were made aware of an opportu-nity for delivering rural unaddressedmail which was created by a constraintin the service offered by NZ Post.

After extended negotiations with NZPost, a co-operative society was formedto fill the gap. An alternative rural deliv-ery system for unaddressed mail (circu-lars, newspapers etc), using a network ofRD contractor distributors, was quicklyestablished.

The co-operative, Coural, is anIndustrial and Provident Society, with lia-bility limited by the value of the numberof issued shares.

These shares are allocated to the RDcontractors on the basis of the numberof boxholders they service on their deliv-ery routes, and their dividends have

been one of the best rates of return inNew Zealand.

In 1998, the Postal Services Act waspassed to bring benefits to consumers inthe postal market through increasedcompetition, and Coural became one ofthe first registered postal operators to beaccredited under the new legislation.Coural is still looking for new ways tohelp achieve the Act’s objectives.

Coural’s business has progressed todate on high service standards. BothCoural and NZ Post use the same RD con-tractors, which means that most ofCoural’s service advantages are betweena printer or advertiser and the RD con-tractor and in the processing and follow-

Rural delivery on time, every time

The man at the helm of Coural ... generalmanager Bryan Running.

ing up of delivery instructions. Recent substantial increases in Coural’s

business are testimony to its commitmentto service.

Coural has been charged with theresponsibility of ensuring the ongoing inde-pendence of its members, and it is wellplaced to take advantage of any changes to

level the postal playing field.It offers an efficient and cost-effective

national rural delivery service, and wouldwelcome the opportunity to provide a realalternative rural network to all publishers,advertisers and co-operatives.

Coural can be contacted at 0800 731 299or coural@coural.co.nz. www.coural.co.nz

Coural provides a New Zealand wide ruralparcel, circulars and non subscriptionnewspaper delivery service.

PROUD MEMBER OF

FREEPHONE 0800 731 299www.coural.co.nz

Straight Furrow • October 16, 2012INTERNATIONALYEAROFCO-OPERATIVES 23

Farmlands

ANNUAL turnover of $773 million,almost 28,000 shareholders, and47 stores throughout the North

Island is what Farmlands TradingSociety can toast on its 50th birthday.

The rural retail giant started in typi-cal Kiwi fashion with a cup of tea inthe Eskdale Hall in rural Hawke’s Bayon December 17, 1962.

Chairman Lachie Johnstone says it isincredible looking back over the life ofFarmlands and seeing how the co-operative has grown from such hum-ble beginnings.

“Those original farmers most likelyheld high hopes for success, but wereprobably unaware that that originalmeeting would set the foundations forone of New Zealand’s most successfulrural trading enterprises.”

Mr Johnstone says everyone atFarmlands is proud to be celebrating50 years of the existence of the com-pany.

“Much has changed since its originin a generation of protectionism andvery strong margins in the supply ofrural goods and services. We nowoperate in an industry where trans-

parency of informa-tion is a given andcompetition is fierce.”

However,Farmlands continuesto do what it set outto back in 1962.

“The current boardof directors believesthat Farmlandsshould never lose itsrelevance and the

current strategy has been successfulensuring that this is the case. At nostage will we rest on our laurels.”

Farmlands was established when agroup of entrepreneurial farmers andgrowers joined forces to secure thebest possible prices on rural suppliesfor their farms and orchards.

Their two objectives were to supplyshareholders with products and serv-ices at a lower everyday price and todeliver long-term shareholder returns.

Chief executive Peter Ellis says 50years on that hasn’t changed, and2012 is about acknowledging and cele-brating five decades of growth andsuccess.

The celebrations include 50 days ofsavings, fantastic giveaways and achance to win a Ford XR6 atFarmlands’ retail stores up untilNovember 13, and all Farmlandsbranches are inviting shareholders towatch the Melbourne Cup at theirlocal branch.

Celebratory memorabilia includesthe production of a book documentingthe company’s history called Our Story- Celebrating 50 Years of Farmlands.

“It details the progress of the co-operative over the years, including thedifficulties facing the early foundingmembers, and the changes in recenthistory that have seen rapid expan-sion and success,” says Mr Ellis.

The founding members wererenowned innovators, and includedMax de Denne, Tom Cranswick, JimRobertshawe, Bill Youren, JohnnyGunn and Henk Bogaard.

In 1962, the business model theyproposed was considered daring,although soundly based on the goodold-fashioned values of a co-operativesociety.

FARMLANDS shareholders literally becomean owner and partner in the business, sosuccess was a win-win situation.

In 1967, in a bid to increase attendance at theannual meeting, it was decided to hold it onMelbourne Cup Day. With a sweepstake incen-tive of winning a trip for two to the Cup, atten-dance jumped from 30 to 300.

Farmlands is still being led with an innovativeand progressive management style by LachieJohnstone and Peter Ellis.

Along with planning at astrategic level, the pairattribute much ofFarmlands’ success to thepeople at the grassrootslevel - the 500 plus staff whodeliver the Farmlands prom-ises of value and service toshareholders on a dailybasis.

Mr Ellis says theFarmlands team representsan important part of theorganisation’s continuousimprovement strategy, and is pivotal in support-ing the recovery of the country’s rural sector.

Farmlands Trading Society Ltd has movedsteadily along a path, from humble beginningsof just 22 members and a first year turnover of£2148.11.4d, to delivering impressive annualsales and profit figures, as well as healthy cashrebates to their shareholders. Any profit made -beyond what is needed to grow the business - isshared out as an annual bonus.

Today close to 28,000 shareholders enjoy spe-cial prices when they shop at Farmlands andreceive exclusive offers at Farmlands CardPartners throughout New Zealand. Any profitmade - beyond what is needed to grow the busi-ness - is shared out as an annual bonus.

A snapshot of Farmlands’ 2011/2012 financialperformance:

• annual turnover increased by 13 per to $773million;

• pre-tax profits before loyalty rebates weresimilar to the previous year at around $5.5 mil-lion;

• rebates to members increased by 23 percent ($3.7 million) to $50.4 million;

• shareholder numbers increased by 925 to27,925;

• 47 stores throughout the North Island, andon-track to have 50 stores by the end of 2013.

Five decades ofgood, old-fashionedco-operation

Peter Ellis

LachieJohnstone

Celebrating a milestoneCelebrating a milestone

Some items may not be available in all Farmlands Stores, however, can be ordered on request.

Call 0800 FARMFONE (0800 327 636) for your nearest Farmlands store.Far

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