Minnesota Ag News Headlines Dayton Proclaims October 'Co-op Month' Minnesota Ag Connection - 10/05/2012 Governor Mark Dayton's signing of an official proclamation declaring October "Co-op Month" in Minnesota is a highlight in a year-long celebration recognizing 2012 as the International Year of Cooperatives." October is traditionally recognized as "Cooperative Month" throughout the nation, a time when cooperatives and their members make a special effort to educate the public about their member-owned and member-controlled business form. Throughout 2012, cooperatives have been celebrating the International Year of Cooperatives, which was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly to recognize the diversity of the cooperative movement around the world and the role of the cooperative business model in achieving economical viability, while also contributing social and community benefits. "Cooperatives Build a Better World" is the theme for this year's October Month celebrations. "This year October Co-op Month is particularly special, as it is the pinnacle of our 2012 International Year of Cooperatives celebration," said Bill Oemichen, president and CEO of Cooperative Network, the organization that requested the Co-op Month proclamation. Cooperative Network is a trade association that serves more than 600 member-cooperative businesses in Minnesota and Wisconsin. "We appreciate Governor Dayton's proclamation, because Minnesota was one of the first states to enact a law authorizing cooperatives. Today, some 3.4 million Minnesotans belong to approximately 1,000 cooperatives. And Minnesota co-ops annually record about $34 billion in revenue and they employ approximately 46,000 Minnesota residents," Oemichen said. The proclamation signed by Governor Dayton recognizes that "Minnesota is the leading state both in numbers of all types of cooperatives and in memberships in cooperatives," and that "Minnesota has a proud heritage of people working together for mutual benefit." The tradition of celebrating Co-op Month also has deep roots in Minnesota. While the idea of celebrating the special nature of cooperatives first appeared in 1924 in Waukegan, Illinois, it was former Minnesota Governor Luther Youngdahl who signed the first official October Co-op Month proclamation in 1948, at the request of the Minnesota Association of Cooperatives (MAC), now Cooperative Network. Soon, the October Co-op Month celebration spread to other states. In 1964, Co-op Month became a national event when another Minnesotan--former Minnesota Governor Orville Freeman who was then U.S. secretary of agriculture--proclaimed a national Co-op Month. This year's theme, "Cooperatives Build a Better World," highlights some of the values that set cooperatives apart from for-profit businesses: cooperative buying power and economic advantage; community commitment and interaction; democratic principles; and people helping people. Send this article to a friend Other Minnesota Headlines Burning Restrictions Lifted in 32 Minnesota Counties Hoeven: No-Cost Sugar Program Serves American People CWT Assists with 3 Million Pounds of Cheese Export Sales 10 Soybean Farmers to See Checkoff in Action Dow Lab Academy Promotes Safety in Future Chemical Workforce Ecolab Event Raises Money for NRA Educational Foundation Minnesota Farmers Make Significant Planting Progress Copyright © 2013 - USAgNet.com. All Rights Reserved.