Community Cooperator

Interesting Co-op Facts

DID YOU KNOW?

Co-ops generate hundreds of thousands of jobs and
billions in income for their communities through
their day-to-day activities. For example…

• Nearly 3,000 farmer cooperatives account
for 300,000 jobs nationwide and a total
payroll of more than $8 billion.

• Some 270 local, consumer-owned telecommunications
cooperatives employ an average
of 47 people each and generate more than
$2 billion in revenues annually.

• In Minnesota alone, cooperatives of all types
generate more than $10 billion in economic
activity annually. In New York, credit unions
alone generate $4 billion annually.

Co-ops also have a strong commitment to the
communities in which their members live and
work. Through cash contributions, volunteerism
and more, co-ops invest in new community businesses
and support local causes ranging from education
to the environment. A few examples…

• The East River Power Cooperative in
Madison, S.D., helped fund an ethanol plant
that today adds $50 million to the area
economy.

• The Heart of Iowa Communications Cooperative
in Union, Iowa, launched an economic
development program that created, among
other things, an assisted living facility, an
apartment building, three new restaurants,
and an Alzheimer’s care unit.

• Four New York credit unions combined to
assist low-income taxpayers with their tax
forms, triggering $2.5 million in tax refunds
that otherwise would have gone unclaimed.

• Food Conspiracy Co-op in Tucson, Ariz.,
formed a recycling program that now
includes 100 businesses and was cited as the
best in the state.