MFU Activities Report
September 2006

Missouri State Fair
Our exhibit at Missouri State Fair was very well received and many fresh faces that visited learned of MFU for the first time. Noted was the strong interest in our community and cooperative development efforts, particularly the MFU Credit Union.

Cooperative Business Evaluation
The organization has worked with a representative from the George May Company who performed an overall business analysis of Ozark Mountain Pork Cooperative. The cooperative was exercising due diligence by bringing in this 120 year old professional firm that provides a third party evaluation of the health of businesses.

Labor Education
Jill Lucht and Russ Kremer met with Paul Rothenburger who teaches labor related courses on the Columbia campus of the University of Missouri. He provided insight regarding needs of the rural Missouri worker and how we might work together to accomplish mutually beneficial goals.

MASBDA Meeting
The organization met recently with Missouri Agriculture and Small Business Development Authority Director Tony Stafford and Business Development officer Marla Young concerning various value added agriculture projects. We provided updates and discussed plan of work strategies for projects related to dairy, wood and goats. We also discussed how the MFU Credit Union could work with producers interested in the Missouri Value Added Loan Guarantee Program.

Broadband Cooperative Fund Raising
Along with the management team of USA Broadband, Russ Kremer met with representatives of funding institutions who had an interest in assisting the development of the subscriber cooperatives that we are developing.

Farm Bill Forum and Picnic
The Farm Bill Forum and Picnic was a success with many presentations delivered by MFU members at the event sponsored by the National and Missouri Farmers Union held in Columbia. Thirty plus testimonies on rural development, agriculture, food, and energy issues were heard. NFU President Tom Buis and Ron De Young, professor of Agriculture Economics at the University of California-Davis, were special guests. The remarks were compiled and delivered to our congressional delegation.

Rural Development Review
The MFU Family Farm Opportunity Center hosted USDA Rural Development officials recently and reviewed the past year’s activities. We provided information related to the technical and organizational assistance we provide to the 20+ cooperative development projects that we are involved in.

Development in South Central
Russ Kremer visited and followed up with some of our members in south central Missouri about emerging community based businesses in the area that could provide economic and quality of life benefits. FFOC has two goat projects that are transforming into farmer owned businesses.

Meadowbrook Farms Coop Visits
Russ Kremer traveled to the Meadowbrook Farms Cooperative (MFC) pork processing facility in Rantoul, Illinois to meet management and staff and build working relationships. Ozark Mountain Pork Cooperative is an associate member of MFC, a farmer owned pork cooperative that began operations 3 ½ years ago. The alliance of the cooperatives has yielded positive results in marketing, processing and producer education.

USDA Advisory Committee Meeting
The USDA Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture met in Washington, DC recently to begin working on a document related to co-existence of Genetically Modified Crops and conventional and organic systems. Russ Kremer is one of 20 members and one of 3 farmers on the committee.

MFU Welcomes National CCHD
Missouri Farmers Union hosted Le Ann Adams of the National Catholic Campaign for Human Development recently in central Missouri. The Washington, DC faith-based organization provides funding to MFU projects that help empower low income rural residents and promote rural economic viability. Barbara Ross, Social Concerns Director of the Jefferson City Diocese, coordinated the visit and accompanied Ms. Adams. The group visited the MFU office and toured sustainable livestock farms in the area.

Film Makers Capture MFU Mission
Producers representing independent film maker Ripple Communications followed MFU around and interviewed us regarding our vision and accomplishments. They are producing a film that documents agriculture and food industry trends and progressive solutions. Many of their films receive air time on the national PBS network.

National Farmers Union Services Develop Carbon Credit Plan
As a member of the National Farmers Union Services Association committee, Russ Kremer had the opportunity to help shape a strategy by which NFU members can enroll acres of land into a carbon sequestration program and receive revenue. North Dakota Farmers Union has taken the lead and has been an agent for carbon credits during the past year. Missouri is expected to receive approval by the Climate Exchange Commission allowing farmers to participate in the trading of credits.

Missouri Credit Union Association
The MFU Credit Union continues to work closely with the Missouri Credit Union Association. We have been working with Field Representative Kevin Shaw update the business and marketing plans.

Missouri Well Represented at NFU Fly-In
Missouri Farmers Union sent a record number of participants to the National Farmers Union Legislative Fly-In held September 10-13. Eldon Bode, Tom Coudron, Connie Duvall, Amy Meyer, Eddie Mitchell, Lowell Schatsiek, Richard Webster, and Russ Kremer visited each office of the Missouri Congressional delegation as well as legislative offices of other states. We attended a briefing hosted by USDA and participated in various meetings and receptions of political and agriculture leaders.

Presentation at the National Press Club
The Consumer Federation of America invited Russ Kremer to speak at the National Press Club in Washington, DC regarding the National Animal Identification System. He expressed our concerns about confidentiality, costs and the potential shifting of liability to the most vulnerable – farmers. He also presented some of the voluntary, non-governmental methods that Farmers Union has developed.

Meetings at USDA Rural Development & Farm Credit Administration
While in Washington, Barry Goodwin, USA Broadband, and Russ Kremer met with the director of the telecommunications division of USDA Rural Development. The group also met with the board of directors of the Farm Credit Administration and representatives of the Homeland Security Administration. The purpose of the meetings was to develop support and awareness of needs for modern telecommunication systems in rural America.

Cooperative Development and Food Alliance
Nancy Smith and Russ Kremer had productive meetings in St. Louis with the director of Cooperative Development Services, Kevin Edburg and the Program Director for the Midwest Food Alliance, Bob Olson. They shared information and offered assistance toward our efforts in developing food, meat and distributing cooperatives.

Cooperative Grocer
The Opportunity Center is examining the feasibility of a cooperative grocery and food warehouse business in St. Louis. The business structure could potentially be an LLC with ownership made up of consumers, farmers and investors. Food grown and processed by our members would be merchandised. Nancy Smith is coordinating this project.

Sustainable Hog Tour
A group of beginning and new farmers recently toured several of the Ozark Mountain Pork Cooperative family farms. They were especially interested in alternative housing systems for farrowing sows.

Mizzou Chapter
The University of Missouri collegiate chapter held its first meeting of the school year on September 20th with Russ Kremer providing the program.

Selling Regional
The organization had a successful meeting with an executive of Schnuck’s Markets in St. Louis. Schnuck’s has a strong interest in building relationships with family farmers and purchasing from local farmers as much as possible.

More Market Relationships
Authentic relationships are paramount when it comes to developing a permanent customer base. It takes time and patience and the willingness to open your doors to guests. Members’ farms have been toured recently by executives from Chipotle Restaurants, Volpi Meat Company and various executive chefs from the St. Louis area.

Presentation at UMC
Russ Kremer was recently a guest speaker of the Agriculture Economics Policy class at the University of Missouri in Columbia. He presented the Farmers Union perspective of farm policy as it relates to competition, trade, rural development, food and nutrition and the next farm bill.

Timberfest Attracts Large Crowd
MFU contributed to the overwhelming success of Timberfest, an event showcasing the economic contributions of the timber industry in the Ozarks. The event was held in Doniphan, Missouri in Ripley County which was once known as the “Timber Capital of the World”. Missouri Farmers Union and National Farmers Union sponsored a sustainable timber management seminar and MFU set-up an exhibit. Ozark Quality Hardwoods Cooperative provided leadership for the event.

FAPRI
Russ Kremer met recently with the director of the Food Agriculture and Policy Research Institute Abner Womack. We discussed how FAPRI can assist Missouri family farmers by compiling data and building economic models as tools for farm business planning. He also spoke to the FAPRI honors class.

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