Apr 14, 2008Red River Valley Growers Join United
The steering committee for the newly formed Red River Valley Fresh Potato Growers Cooperative has announced it has joined the United Potato Growers of America. The committee also announced the first annual meeting of the cooperative will be held April 23rd at 5 p.m. at Market Place in Grafton, N.D. The board of directors election will take place at this meeting, as will the selection of officers. Prospective members also are invited to the meeting.
The Red River Valley Fresh Cooperative was officially incorporated by North Dakota Secretary of State Al Jaeger in late December after the fresh growers decided to form their own co-op after being affiliated with the Minn-Dak Bargaining Co-op for more than two years. Minn-Dak’s main function is to negotiate contracts for the process growers in the area.
Steve Tweten, President of NoKota Packers in Buxton, N.D., led the steering committee that formed the new co-op. David Moquist, grower-shipper from O.C. Schulz & Sons in Crystal, is the acting-chairman of the group until election of officers takes place at the annual meeting. The committee began recruiting membership this past October and recently determined there were enough commitments to go forward with United affiliation.
