Alabama Farmers Cooperative

Alabama Farmers Cooperative (AFC) is a farmer-owned cooperative that has served farmers since 1936, when it was organized in Decatur, Alabama as the Tennessee Valley Fertilizer Cooperative by a group of 11 local farmers' Co-ops to meet farmers' need for fairly priced fertilizer. AFC describes itself as a Co-op system built on the belief that members are stronger together, and it returns profits to its member-owners each year through patronage and equity retirement. Its facilities are governed by local, farmer-owned cooperatives, and each member Co-op shares in the financial proceeds from AFC operations. AFC states that it has grown to become one of the largest farmer-owned agriculture-related businesses in the Southeast, and that through strategic diversification its reach extends coast to coast. Its local Co-op stores offer products ranging from feed and fertilizer for large-scale farmers to pet food and flowers for pet owners and backyard gardeners.

Alabama Farmers Cooperative, originally the Tennessee Valley Fertilizer Cooperative, was organized in Decatur, Alabama in 1936 by a group of 11 local farmers' Co-ops to satisfy farmers' need for fairly priced fertilizer. By the 1940s, the Co-op began making feed for local cattle and hog farmers, and by the 1950s it was selling tires, lubricants and tools. In 1957, to provide a more direct and ready market for farmers' grain, AFC added a grain marketing service. In 1961, AFC added a merchandising function to its operations; with the purchase of Farmers Marketing and Exchange Stores, customers could buy home gardening items, automotive products, hardware and other home needs. In 1975, Bonnie Plants, LLC, headquartered in Opelika, Alabama, became part of AFC. In 1993, AFC created a financing subsidiary, Cooperative Financial Services, to finance local cooperative members, providing financing for farmers and AFC member cooperatives' seasonal and long-term financing needs. In 1997, Frank Currie Gin, located in McCullough, Alabama, became part of AFC and serves cotton farmers in South Alabama. In 1999, AFC joined forces with SouthFresh Farms in Indianola, Mississippi, to form SouthFresh Aquaculture, which provides seafood products to retailers across the US and feed products to customers. AFC states that through strategic diversification it has grown its roots to reach coast to coast, and that it has grown to become one of the largest farmer-owned agriculture-related businesses in the Southeast.

A farmer-owned cooperative system serving farmers since 1936, described by AFC as one of the largest farmer-owned agriculture-related businesses in the Southeast.

• Fertilizer

• Feed

• Grain marketing service

• Tires, lubricants and tools

• Home gardening items, automotive products, hardware

• Seafood products

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5. 5Alabama Farmers Cooperative, Inc.wikidata.org