11/12/02

By CAROL KINSLEY

Southern States Cooperative has asked a group of its younger customer-members to give the company a piece of their minds — to see how things are changing on their farms and how the co-op might better meet their needs. Jeff Allen of Seaford, Del., is one of those young cooperators, chosen by his peers this year to chair the Young Cooperator Advisory board.
Southern States spokesman Jim Erickson said of Allen, “He’s a great fellow. We feel fortunate in the kind of people like Jeff that this program tends to bring forth. That’s why we’re glad we have this tool available.”
Erickson explained there are a lot of changes going on in farming today and the cooperative wants to be sure it is getting input from all levels of its membership to see how it can meet their needs and expectations. The Young Cooperator program is designed to tap into a group of newer people in farming to see how they view the services the cooperative offers.
“To operate as efficiently and effectively as we can, we need that kind of input from all parts of our membership,” Erickson said.
“This program can help familiarize these newer, younger members with the organization itself — what makes a cooperative unique, how it is organized, how it differs from other businesses and what their roles are. It’s a good way to expose them to ‘Co-ops 101.’”
Southern States also views the program as a head start to developing future leadership in the organization, Erickson continued. “Leadership is especially important in a cooperative, because the owners are users and the users are owners. It’s important that member-customers, the people we serve, are prepared, willing and able to take on leadership roles in the cooperative.”
Allen and 27 other representatives from the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast met at the Young Cooperators Conference in Richmond in January. Among the issues they examined were communications vehicles they relied on for information about the co-op, customer expectations for co-op products and services, the Internet and what attracts them to particular Web sites, as well as grain marketing alternatives and financing programs Southern States should offer.
“We also were given an overview of the organization’s operations and management,” Allen continued. “We met with various vice presidents and department heads and saw how departments in Southern States Cooperatives currently operated. Then we got hands-on experience in how these departments work on a daily basis.
“We were split into separate groups and asked questions — specifically to give them a piece of our minds. Here we are 35 and under, and they accepted our criticism and showed us respect.”
Allen also attended the 74th annual National Farmers Cooperative Council held in Chicago where speakers from all aspects of the ag industry addressed trends in farming and future challenges in agriculture. He also made a presentation to Southern States’ corporate board in September on the advisory group’s activities.
Allen sees tremendous changes in technology. Keeping up with those changes has become a full-time job, he said, and not one that can be contracted out.
“The way the economy is, it’s another task we take on ourselves. With our operation, it used to be that Mom and Dad could handle the paperwork. Now we all three do it as a full-time job.”
The new changes involve “becoming lean and mean just to survive,” Allen said. “Watching costs and inputs. We just have to be more conservative.
“Communication and education are two things we have to follow,” he continued.
As an example of keeping himself educated, Allen works closely with Delaware Soybean Board and will attend a seminar in St. Louis this month on soybeans and alternative uses of the crop.
“It’s nice to realize there are still young people my age who are just as enthused as I am about agriculture. We’re not a dying breed, just a breed that’s under stress right now.”
One cause for his stress in late October was rain — nonexistent through much of the summer — that would keep him from planting his last 50 acres of wheat.
“The forecast is not looking good,” he said. “Usually they recommend having wheat in by mid-November, but we’re so close to being done, I want to get finished.”
Allen is also vice president of the Delaware FFA Alumni Association and works with FFA groups throughout the state. He has worked with student judging teams and provided judges for them. He also has worked on several fund-raisers to help FFAers meet their goals.
“It’s really great to see Delaware FFA membership the highest it’s ever been. There are still kids interested. My main objective is to let kids know there are careers out there for them, other than just farming. And you don’t have to go to work for DNREC or EPA.”
The annual FFA alumni banquet and auction is Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. at Felton Fire Hall, he added. Anyone who wants tickets may call Allen at (302) 337-7678.
“I was a hypocrite when I was 20. I didn’t want anyone to know I was a farmer. In college, if you said you were a farmer, they thought you were a basic redneck. Now I’m proud to be a farmer and face challenges everyday.”
Allen attended University of North Carolina, but graduated from Wesley College in Dover.
Another project he’s involved in, at the request of the Department of Education and Delaware Ag Secretary Mike Scuse, is helping to raise funds for a new Delaware Ag Education Building at the Harrington fairgrounds. The 48-foot by 100-foot building is expected to cost more than $100,000.
“It will eliminate ag education displays in tents where they are often rained out or too hot and too dirty for people to want to go in. It will be air conditioned and heated with concrete floors. It will be available for use throughout the year for a central meeting place.”
Construction will start as soon as funds are raised.
Allen noted that farming was recently among the top 10 least desirable occupations in a Washington, D.C., newspaper trivia column, but he finds self-satisfaction in his chosen way of life.
“Financial skills comes into play. Just like this past year — it was a disaster for many farmers, but four or five years ago we had good years. You just have to save for a rainy day.”