Selling Units, Values, and Other Questions:

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The following Answers are provided as a result of often asked questions by our members.

Question: Can I sell my membership units to anyone I choose?

Answer: Unless the person you are selling to is an immediate relative, the answer is NO. IRS regulations require that arms length transactions go through a Qualified Matching Service. So if you would like to sell your GGC Units outside of your immediate family, you must contact FNC Ag Stock, LLC (701-780-2828) and they will explain the listing process.

Question: Why do I need to complete delivery (pay agency fee or delivery bushels) prior to transferring my Units?

Answer: Board policy requires that deliveries for the year be completed prior to the transfer being approved. For Method A pool participants, bushels committed must be delivered to the plant before a transfer is approved. For Method B pool participants, the Agency fee of $0.02/bushel must be paid so that GGC can access and deliver those bushels on the member’s behalf before a transfer is approved.

Question: How do I know what my Membership Units are worth?

Answer: Golden Growers does not place a value on Units. When asked, we refer members to FNC Ag Stock’s website (www.fncagstock.com) to review recent sales. It is important to know that very few sales occur during any year.

Question: I want to change delivery from Method A to B (or Method B to A) during the year? Is this possible?

Answer: No. We provide members an opportunity each fall to change their delivery method for the coming year. Once the new year starts, members are committed to fulfill their delivery using the method selected.

GGC Issues Distribution Payment of $0.152/bushel

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On February 1, 2019, after review of the 2018 end of year financial and income statements, the Board of Directors allocated income of $7,811,471 to the members of Golden Growers Cooperative. The Board also approved the retirement of a portion of allocated equity credit in an amount of $0.152 per patronized bushel for a total of $2,354,553.

Golden Growers K-1 Tax Forms

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Golden Growers 2018 K-1 Partnership Tax Forms were placed in the mail on February 15th. Unlike 1099s, issuing K-1 tax forms requires Golden Growers to close the year, begin our annual audit, and complete our tax return. Because we understand the need to timely issue a K-1 for our farmer members, our K-1 is issued as soon as is humanly possible. Thank you for your patience.

If for some reason, you do not receive your K-1 tax form, give our office a call at 701-281-0468.

SAVE THE DATE: GGC Annual Meeting Set for Thursday, March 28th

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Golden Growers Cooperative will hold its Annual Members Meeting on Thursday, March 28th at the Doubletree Conference Center, 825 E Beaton Drive, West Fargo, ND.

Members will have the opportunity to elect Directors to serve on the Golden Growers Board. Current directors up for re-election are: David Benedict, Sabin, MN (EC District); Matthew Hasbargen, Breckenridge, MN (NE District); Nicolas Pyle, Casselton, ND (NW District); Byron Koehl, Hancock, MN (SE District); and Brett Johnson, Mooreton, ND (SW District).

Any member in good standing is eligible to be nominated to the Board in the district where the member is registered. If you are interested in serving on the Board or want more information about district elections, visit our website at www.goldengrowers.com or contact us at 701-281-0468 or scotts@goldengrowers.com.

Members may also be voting on a Bylaw amendment that would reduce the number of directors and districts.

GGC Board Approves Distribution of $0.14/bushel

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On September 13th, the Golden Growers Board of Directors approved a distribution of $2,168,667 to members of record as of October 1, 2018. This distribution retires an additional portion of 2017 allocated income and is to be issued no later than October 15th. Total 2017 allocated income was $8,276,784 or roughly $0.53/bushel. In combination with the February and June distributions, a total of $6,831,667 has been issued to members in 2018. Of this amount, the remaining allocated income for 2016 and $6,017,566 of 2017 allocated income has been retired.

As previously mentioned, the GGC Board believes it is important to build a reserve during the course of this new lease for several reasons that include likely capital expenditures at the plant, and the potential for Cargill to exercise its option to purchase 50% interest in ProGold. This distribution authorized by the Board will result in a remaining equity credit balance for 2017 of $2,259,218.

2019 Annual Delivery Pool Election

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Each year, Members have the opportunity to change their method of delivery by submitting a revised Annual Delivery Agreement (ADA). This is your only opportunity to change your method of delivery for the coming year.

You should have already received your Annual Delivery Election letter. Only members intending to change their delivery method need to respond. Members who deliver directly to the plant through the Method A pool have a $0.07/bushel advantage over members participating in the Method B pool. In 2018, 27.7% of bushels were delivered by members directly to the plant.

If you are unable to locate your ADA election letter and intend to change your delivery method, please contact the Golden Growers office at 701-281-0468.

2019 Incentive Payments and Agency Fees

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Incentive Payments and Agency Fees for Method A and Method B Pool participation will remain the same for 2019. That means Golden Growers will pay $0.05 for Method A bushels delivered directly to the plant and will charge $0.02 for Method B bushels the Cooperative secures and delivers on a member’s behalf.

Share Your Thoughts on Board Governance

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At the GGC annual meeting, Executive Vice President Scott Stofferahn presented a ‘preferred’ plan that would result in a reduction in Board members from 15 to 9 and Districts from 5 to 3.  Stofferahn explained that the reduction could be accomplished over a two year period from 2020 to 2021 when current Directors reach their term limits for serving on the Board.

Stofferahn stated that the Board has not endorsed a plan, but they identified a preferred option to present to GGC members.

We ask that you read this entire story and complete the survey by clicking the Survey link at the bottom of the page.

The preferred option would create Central, Northern, and Southern member districts.  The Central District would include MN counties of  Richland & Wilkin and the ND County of Cass.  The Northern District would include counties in Minnesota and North Dakota north of Richland and Wilkin Counties (excluding Cass).  The Southern District would include MN, ND, and  SD counties south of Cass (excluding Richland and Wilkin) plus all members living outside of the three state area.

Central – 511 members

Northern – 553 members

Southern – 487 members

Two Directors would be elected from each District and three directors would be elected ‘at large’ from all districts.

Stofferahn shared research on Board size which indicated the following:

  • Larger Boards: Allow for more member engagement; Are associated with complex organizations and outside directors; and Allow for greater continuity.
  • Smaller Boards: Are more effective at monitoring the business of the organization; Tend to be more engaged; Result in improved decision making; and Cost less.

Stofferahn cautioned, “Not all large boards result in better member engagement. And not all small boards are more effective and engaged.”

According to a 2003 Survey of 437 Cooperatives, a 7 member board was most common.

At Large Board membership was a topic of discussion at the annual meeting.  The advantage of allowing ‘at large’ board members would be to allow for a larger pool of candidates for three of the board positions.  A disadvantage could be that a single district could be over represented on the Board.

Please share your thoughts about this proposal by clicking the following link:

Click Here > GGC Board Governance Survey

GGC Approves Distribution of $0.14/bushel and passes $100 million in total distributions to members!

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On June 15th, the Golden Growers Board of Directors approved a distribution of $2,168,667 to members of record as of June 1, 2018. This distribution is to be issued no later than June 30th. Total 2017 allocated income was $8,276,784 or roughly $0.53/bushel. In February, the Board issued a distribution to retire $2,493,967 of 2017 allocated income. This June distribution will retire $813,735 of remaining 2016 allocated income and $1,354,932 of 2017 allocated income for a combined total of $2,168,667 or $0.14/bushel.

As previously mentioned, the GGC Board believes it is important to build a reserve during the course of this new lease for several reasons that include likely capital expenditures at the plant, and the potential for Cargill to exercise its option to purchase 50% interest in ProGold. This distribution authorized by the Board will result in a remaining equity credit balance for 2017 of $4,427,885. With this payment, Golden Growers has issued payments to members totaling $100,875,160 or 186.9% of original investment in the ProGold plant.

Mark Dillon, GGC’s Executive VP during through 2012 said, “In 1996 the price for HFCS plummeted and we knew the losses could not be sustained for long. ProGold’s leadership found a solution by leasing the plant to Cargill on terms paid off the debt at the end of the 10 year lease. Some members wondered if they would ever see a return on their investment. But members who were patient have been rewarded for their confidence. For me, the best moment in our history was mailing that first cash distribution of more than 59 cents per share in August, 2008.” Dillon credited extraordinary leadership from the GGC and ProGold Boards during those challenging years.

Ethanol Groups Vent Frustration

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When EPA Secretary Pruit toured the states of South Dakota and Iowa in June, he was met by farmers protesting the Agency’s unwillingness to make good on a promise by President Trump to allow E15 to be sold all year round.

At issue is an EPA regulation on Reed vapor pressure (RVP) that effectively bans 15% ethanol fuel blends from being sold in most markets during the summer even though E15 has lower RVP emissions than gasoline sold in the same markets.

In April, 18 Senators (including all from ND, SD, & MN) signed a letter asking Pruit to expedite the rulemaking process on the President’s commitment. Yet two months later, there has been zero action by the EPA.

In the months preceding the Senators letter on E15, the EPA was aggressively granting ‘hardship’ waivers intended for smaller refiners that would otherwise face severe financial hardship complying with the Renewable Fuels Standard. Dozens of these waivers have been granted including Andeavor, one of the country’s largest refiners, and CVR Energy, owned by billionaire Carl Icahn. On June 6th, farm and renewable fuel groups petitioned the EPA to account for an estimated loss of 1.5 billion gallons in ethanol volume. “These lost volumes are having a negative effect on the nation’s corn growers at a time when net farm income is project to hit its lowest point in 12 years,” said NCGA President Kevin Skunes.

Ethanol groups expressed relief, however, that they succeeded to convince the White House not to proceed with a proposal to allow RIN credits for exports on renewable fuel. (Source: American Coalition for Ethanol & Growth Energy)