Legacy

Editor's note: This article updates one that first appeared in Farmer Cooperatives in May 1993.

        It is a hot summer in Mississippi. By mid-June, the thermometer seems to be stuck at the century mark and there's no relief in sight. Most members of the Indian Springs Farmers Association can only stand by and watch as their fruit and vegetable crops wilt in this sweltering heat.
        Only eight of the 56 members have irrigation available and even that water source isn't enough to battle the inferno-like environment.
        Despite the heat, Ben Burkett is keeping a cool head. The farmer confidently predicts that this year will be the best ever for his small produce marketing cooperative.
        "I think we'll do a quarter million dollars in sales this year," says the co-op officer. "Our leafy green, winter vegetables did well and the prices were up. Plus, we're getting started on our value-added products this year."
        Burkett, one of the founding members of his cooperative, might not have been so confident only two years ago. That was before this group of black farmers celebrated the ribbon-cutting for their own grading and packing facility - one of the major factors changing how they're doing business today and determining much of their future growth.

With its diverse mix of produce, Indian Springs is one of the few black-owned grower cooperatives that are thriving. Ben Burkett and his fellow growers believe cooperative marketing is the key to their survival.
(USDA photos by Ken Hammond)

        In June 1996, the Indian Springs Farmers Association moved into its new packing shed in Petal, Miss., a small town about 13 miles east of Hattiesburg and 70 miles from Mobile, Ala. The $310,000 investment for the new facility and equipment may not represent a major chapter in the annals of farm lending, but it was a huge step forward for the small co-op.
        The warm southern climate allows Indian Springs members to grow and harvest produce every month of the year. Watermelon is the biggest crop from the annual harvest that also includes kale, collared greens, bell peppers, cucumbers, okra, squash, sweet corn, snap beans, crowder peas, strawberries and more.
        Prior to opening the facility, the co-op's members were spending much time as well as gasoline and tire rubber just to ready their product for market. A state-owned packing facility where they rented space for grading and packing was a 50-mile drive. The other option, field packing and use of a small "lean-to" shed for storage, required traveling 38 miles to pick up ice for cold storage.
        "Before we even sold the first thing from the new facility, we were making money just by eliminating all those trips up and down the highway," says Burkett.
        Although it has already been open for two years, the packing shed will not reach full operation until this fall, when new equipment is installed to begin value-added packaging. The full complement includes a drive-up dock, walk-in cooler, conveyors, ice-making machine, stainless steel wash room, grading tables, hydraulic lift jacks and an equipped office for conducting cooperative business. The facility also has a walk-up sales area where co-op members can sell their produce direct to the end customer.
        The co-op has already secured its first contract for a value-added product to be packaged with the new equipment. Beginning in October, Indian Springs will make weekly shipments of 5,000 two-pound bags of cut and washed collared greens to a Minnesota-based food service company.
        "When this fellow called us up about buying the greens, I asked him how much he'd want to buy," Burkett said. "He wanted to know if we could give him 35,000 bags a week! I told him that we weren't quite that big, but thanks for liking our product so much."
        Although that was an order they couldn't fill at the moment, Indian Springs members are forward thinking about other related endeavors for the co-op. For instance, they are introducing their own private label line of packaged, fresh produce. And the co-op will be going after more value-added business by custom packing pre-sliced vegetables in five- and 10-pound cooking bags for food service industry customers. Burkett says cooperative members are convinced these value-added products will be a big part of the future for farmers who want to increase their competitiveness in the marketplace.
        Having the new facility is also allowing co-op members to diversify their production even further. Some members are now growing snow peas, a crop they could not previously market due to packing and storage limitations.
        Being able to grade and package fresh produce quickly is allowing the co-op to ensure product freshness - a factor that will help them build a reputation and, ultimately, sales. Co-op members pride themselves on shipping their produce in less than 24 hours after picking to a current customer base that includes five supermarket chains, three food service companies and three direct sales outlets in Chicago and New Orleans. A refrigerated truck owned by the co-op makes deliveries within a 300-mile radius to cities like New Orleans, Memphis and Jackson. Contract trucks are used for the longer trips to Chicago and Nashville.

Indian Springs Farmers Association members will celebrate their co-op's 20th anniversary this year. It adds two to three members annually. That's steady growth, considering the number of black farmers who have been forced to leave their land. Black farmers were once a basic part of the rural landscape in the South, but they are fast becoming an "endangered species." Burkett and his fellow growers believe cooperative marketing is the key to their survival.
In 1910, there were one million black farmers in the United States who owned 15 million acres of land, mostly in the South. By the 1960s, the agricultural census showed that black farmers owned only six million acres of land. Today, there are less than 20,000 black farmers who own about two million acres of land. If the trend continues, black farmers will have virtually disappeared by the end of the decade.
Small, black-owned grower cooperatives like Indian Springs are hanging on tight to try to reverse this trend. The co-op, which started with only 12 members in 1978, now has 56 members. Of that number, only seven are full-time farmers and four are women. On average, members farm 22 acres. In most cases, family members provide the necessary labor to plant and harvest crops.

Founding member Ben Burkett (left) and staffer James Myers of Mississippi's Indian Springs Farmers Association expect the produce marketing cooperative to have its best year ever.

        Burkett, whose family has cultivated the same land since 1886, counts himself among those who must earn a portion of their income off the farm.
        But farming, whether in a full-time or part-time capacity, is a legacy this farmer and his fellow cooperative members must work hard to preserve.
        The Federation of Southern Cooperatives, an organization that represents minority cooperatives and provides direct assistance to farmers, is helping this co-op achieve its objectives. The progress being made by Indian Springs is indicative of how the Federation helps cooperatives.

Burkett says the cooperative's new packing shed is in large part being made possible thanks to the assistance received from the Federation.
        Originally slated for a fall 1993 opening, it took three years to arrange financing for the facility and almost three more years to clear other regulatory hurdles before the shed was finally built and open for business.
        Half the money for the project came from a matching grant provided by the Governor's Office of Economic Development. The cooperative put 15 percent down while the Federation financed the remaining 35 percent through a combination of low-interest loans and grants.
        "This is basically occurring because of the Federation's help," Burkett says. "Before this, we had never received any state or local support and had never borrowed any money. The Federation provided us with the necessary technical and financial assistance to move forward." He also credited the USDA Soil Conservation Service (now the Natural Resources Conservation Service) for helping the co-op complete the application process.

The co-op's new packing shed is enabling members to move into value-added processing and to expand markets. The facility will reach full operation this fall.

        Guidance from the Federation has helped Indian Springs members work through co-op development and management issues. The co-op has also turned to the Federation for help in marketing and for short-term operating capital.
        "The Federation loans us money that allows us to pay farmers 50 percent of their earnings just after their produce has been graded and the other 50 percent when we get a check," Burkett says. This method of payment keeps many members in business from season to season.
        If it wasn't for the cooperative, Burkett says there is "no way we growers would be doing as well as we are. This way, we sell our own crops direct to stores like Kroger without any middlemen to take a slice of our profits."
        The Federation has also provided the Indian Springs cooperative with some small grants to buy equipment, including planters, trailers and spray units. The cooperative charges members a small fee to use the equipment. The idea is to charge just enough to recoup the cost of the equipment in four years and have enough money to pay for parts and maintenance.
        Indian Springs members have relied on the Federation for technical assistance and training in crop production. Significant improvements have been made over the last five years and increased, higher quality crops are the fruition of these efforts.
        "Education, seed quality, management and equipment - all these things are better now," says Burkett. He believes that these factors plus the availability of a new packing facility are contributing to the coop's upward sales trend.

        Despite the adverse summer weather that will reduce some harvests by as much as 50 percent, Burkett says he expects a 10-percent increase in the co-op's overall fruit and vegetable harvest in 1998. That volume, combined with the introduction of value-added products, will account for an expected $50,000 increase over the co-op's usual $200,000 sales plateau.
        With extra dollars in its collective coffer, the co-op's seven directors are making plans for the future. They're building up the co-op's reserves and hoping to bring a manager on board next year. With a full-time employee, the co-op will be positioned to further build its value-added business and maintain regular business hours, which should increase walk-up sales revenue.
        The growers are also experimenting with new crops that garner premium market prices. The demand for fresh herbs is mounting, so Indian Springs growers are trying to get positioned to capture a share of this specialty produce market. Burkett has put in trial plots on his farm to determine how well herbs such as oregano, parsley and basil will grow.
        Co-op members are gaining confidence as sales rise and the membership ranks swell. This has given rise to some needed, far-sighted goals. Burkett says it's time for new leadership to take the reins and he believes this will happen soon since interest and the base of potential leaders have grown.
        The co-op is also investing in its future by starting a youth program. This summer, 10 young people are trying their hand at growing a crop and seeing it through to market. Indian Springs' leadership views this project as an investment in the future of the co-op and a chance to keep black youths involved in farming.
        Even when the weather isn't cooperating, the members of Indian Springs have plenty of things going their way. With a new facility and equipment, greater diversity and improved crop management, and aggressive planning for the future, this group is poised to make significant strides.
        At a recent board meeting, an enthusiastic director suggested that the group begin planning for the year when the coop will have $1 million in sales volume. And nobody laughed.