Iowa Farm Supply and Grain Elevator Cooperatives

The Iowa Alliance for Cooperative Business Development at Iowa State University is utilizing its cooperative research and outreach programs to help farm supply and grain elevator cooperatives address major changes in retail fertilizer markets.

Key changes in retail fertilizer markets over the past three years include price volatility and price increases. In addition to the unprecedented price volatility, basic changes in the trade practices at the manufacturing, wholesaling, and retail levels in the fertilizer value chain are affecting cooperatives. The Iowa Alliance for Cooperative Business Development (IACBD) provided outreach programs and published information about the shift in the fertilizer industry and its impact on cooperatives and producers. The influence of volatile grain prices on cooperative balance sheets was also explored.

Three workshops were conducted by IACBD in partnership with the Iowa Institute for Cooperatives. The workshops presented how Iowa farm supply and grain elevator cooperatives could cope with the rapid increase in fertilizer and grain prices this past year and the impacts on financing of cooperative operations. The level of equity that was adequate a few years ago is no longer sufficient. The workshops helped cooperative board officers, directors, and managers understand the business model adjustments necessary to build cooperative equity levels going forward.