In 2011, communicating the cooperative value package to member-owners was identified as the most critical challenge among U.S. agricultural cooperatives. Rural cooperatives in three states were surveyed to identify current communications methods and to elicit the effectiveness of communicating...

Grain/fertilizer volumes are major risks for grain/supply cooperatives followed by fertilizer and fuel margins. Operating losses force stock write downs (22% probability) and negative cashflow (15% probability). Decisions on cash and stock patronage, infrastructure investment, and equity...

Fewer small meat processing plants combined with increased demand for locally-grown and process-verified meat products in recent years have spurred interest in the construction of producer-owned processing facilities. To help producers and Extension specialists develop preliminary feasibility...

This research forecasts peak call volume to allow a centralized call center to minimize staffing costs. A Gaussian copula is used to capture the dependence among nonnormal distributions. Peak call volume can be easily and more accurately predicted using the marginal probability distribution with...

The objective of the study is to determine how grain-based ethanol, cellulosic-based ethanol, and biodiesel production could influence cropping patterns in the Southern Plains. The study analyzes current and potential biofuel crop production and projects cropping changes at various biofuel prices.

The paper summarizes the harvesting and transportation costs of biomass in an individual producer’s framework versus a cooperative framework using a feasibility template developed in MS Excel. The cost is compared between individual producer having 1000 acres of land and a cooperative with...

Audited financial statements of 22 Oklahoma cooperatives were used to investigate the success of mergers in improving financial performance. Five categories of annual financial ratios were calculated for each firm. Paired difference tests were used to analyze the success of the merger in...

Country elevators competed chiefly through increased efficiency in grain handling and transportation. The development by the railroads of more favorable rates for multi-car shipments (unit train) has led grain cooperatives and other agribusiness firms to invest in high speed rail load out...

Characteristics and potential loan volume growth of different borrower types is assessed relative to the opinions of Oklahoma Farm Credit senior officials and loan officers. Senior officials are more positive relative to the characteristics of non-traditional borrowers; however, both agree these...

Drought impact both producers and agribusinesses. This study investigates the impacts of the 2004-2007 droughts on Oklahoma grain handling and fertilizer supply firms. The results indicated an average decline in firm revenues of 30%. Individual firms had single year revenue declines of 85% and...