Did you know 2025 is the International Year of Cooperatives? The United Nations of General Assembly has declared this year the Year of Cooperatives, underscoring the vital role cooperatives play in sustainable development.
As one of those cooperatives, our business model puts our member-owners at the center of our association. Along with our commitment to our members through our vision, mission and values, GreenStone embraces the seven principles of a cooperative:
1. Open and voluntary membership
2. Democratic control
3. Economic participation
4. Autonomy and independence
5. Education, training, and information
6. Cooperation among cooperatives
7. Concern for community
To highlight a few:
Your membership in your GreenStone cooperative makes you an owner through your purchase of stock. The sale of stock provides capital back to GreenStone, which is used to help maintain a strong financial foundation and secure funding for the Farm Credit bonds which provide the funding for the loans we provide.
GreenStone members also have the power of your voice in our annual member elections. It’s up to you to appoint the leadership of our association: the governing board of directors and nominating committee. This is an important responsibility that ensures GreenStone continues to achieve our mission of serving our agricultural and rural communities.
Another significant value of your cooperative is the return of a portion of GreenStone’s annual earnings each year to our members in the form of Patronage. When our members are successful, so is your cooperative, and that puts money right back in the pockets of our members. The return of over $1 billion back to our members is a direct result of the success of our members, the relationships we’ve built with you, and your trust in GreenStone.
Beyond the financial benefits, support through education, resources and partnership with other organizations – including other agricultural cooperatives – are key to our mission and to the cooperative spirit. Helping members sharpen their skills and broaden their thinking keeps our customers on the leading edge. From conferences and seminars to mentorships and online resources, GreenStone remains committed in our pledge to cultivate a robust, thriving community and empowering our members.
For GreenStone, making the choice to strengthen communities through compassion and generosity is simple. Supporting youth by investing in education and empowering future generations with the tools to be successful, advocating for agriculture by connecting the value of farming and our customers to non-farm publics and key stakeholders, supporting causes that further develop our members and benefit their operations, helping to remove financial barriers and provide educational opportunities for those developing a career in the industry, and enhancing the quality of life in the rural communities we serve are all pillars of our outreach and community focus.
Each decision GreenStone makes as a leader in the agriculture industry, as a fellow rural community neighbor and as a member-owned cooperative, are all made with the future in mind.
As we celebrate the International Year of Cooperatives, we reflect on all the benefits of being a part of our cooperative, and the most important part of it is you, our member-owners! It is your partnership, insight, passion, commitment, and leadership that help us fulfill our mission of providing reliable financial services and rural expertise to continue strengthening our rural communities.
To view the summer 2025 issue of Partners magazine in its entirety, click here.
