Farmers Cooperative Association (FCA), based in Talmage, Kan., will merge with Mid Kansas Cooperative Association (MKC) on Sept. 1, following a positive vote by 98 percent of FCA patrons in a special meeting on July 24. MKC, headquartered in Moundbridge, Kan., will see its territory expand to 10 counties and 37 retail and wholesale locations in central Kansas as a result of the merger.
“I am very pleased that FCA members approved the merger with MKC,” said Dave Christiansen, MKC president and CEO. “MKC will most certainly be a stronger overall organization with the addition of the FCA members and employees.”
FCA has operations in Talmage, Abilene, Solomon, Longford, Bennington, Salina, Wells, Niles, and Culver, and provides fuel, feed, agronomy, and grain services to more than 3,500 members and patrons. The co-op will operate under the MKC banner after the merger, and brings approximately 47 full-time employees to the combined enterprise. FCA’s agronomy centers are located at Solomon, Abilene, Talmage, Longford, and Bennington.
FCA said its board members interviewed three cooperatives when the decision was made to explore a merger due to the “ongoing challenge faced by agricultural businesses.” A source close to the sale said FCA took a “proactive approach” after back-to-back drought years impacted revenues.
FCA said MKC was selected as a cooperative partner in part because of its profitable operations, sound financial condition, and strong management. FCA said its board members also believed that as a part of MKC they would be able to maintain a cooperative presence within their trade territory.
“MKC shares our values, our mission and our standards of customer service,” said Toby Watt, FCA board chairman. “I am very pleased to see our members vote in favor of the merger and feel that we will become a stronger organization as we transition to the MKC family.”
The FCA board of directors will appoint one board member and one associate board member to serve on the MKC board of directors.
MKC has more than 4,500 members and 145 full-time employees, and had total sales at year-end February 2006 of over $217 million. The company posted nearly $3.16 million in patronage allocations in 2006, along with $558,728 in equity redemptions. MKC’s trade territory comprises some 550,000 acres of cropland, on which approximately 70,000 tons of fertilizer are applied annually.
MKC’s agronomy business includes a full line of fertilizers, crop protection products, and seed, in addition to custom application equipment and crop consulting and precision agriculture services. The cooperative has fertilizer facilities in Kansas at Buhler, Burns, Castleton, Conway, Florence, Galva, Goessel, Groveland, Haven, Inman, Lindsborg, Marquette, McLain, Moundridge, Peabody, Roxbury, Walton, and Whitewater.
In addition to its agronomy and fuel services, MKC has 27 grain locations with a combined elevator space of 20.3 million bushels, and offers wholesale and retail feed sales to swine, beef, dairy, and poultry operations within its trade territory.