Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
It was 1943, a time when Franklin D. Roosevelt was President, the United States was involved in World War II and the Great Depression was officially ending. Meanwhile, a group of Fessenden area farmers joined forces in an effort to boost buying power and create better grain marketing opportunities. Their joint effort led to the development of Fessenden Cooperative Association, which held its incorporation meeting on April 10, 1943.
The original charter members included Lee Lyness, John Mehlhouse, Walter Geisler, Milton Pepple, Gust Gunderson, and Lewis Price. A year later, the Co-op held its first annual meeting with fourteen stockholders in attendance out of the 46 original stockholders. They reported a first-year handle of 221,448 bushels and a net savings of $5,706.28. Contrast that to its 2018 handle of 29,167,881 bushels and net savings of $4,470,730.
Fessenden Co-op has been committed to growth since its inception, building a new annex in 1953, adding feed and seed services, and then building a new elevator in 1957. The concrete plant currently in operation in Fessenden was completed in 1980. What began as one lone elevator in Fessenden, has spread throughout central North Dakota. Fessenden Co-op has grown significantly throughout its 75-year history. With its head office in Fessenden and a trade radius of 65 miles with locations in four counties. Fessenden Cooperative Association now has grain storage and marketing facilities in Carrington, Hamberg, New Rockford, Esmond, Harlow and Maddock.
With the numerous locations and the variety of services that they offer, the organization provides integrated services for area growers. Like many other cooperatives, Fessenden Co-op operates as a grain and agronomy cooperative, buying and marketing a range of grain products, custom application of fertilizer and chemicals, and offering precision ag services. The company strives to serve as a resource for growers, helping members improve efficiencies, and improve return on their crops.
Fessenden Cooperative Association was one of the first elevators in the state that was able to load 50 car unit trains in 1980, and one of the first to load 100 car trains in the late 1990s. The company now has three shuttle train locations in Fessenden, Carrington, and Hamberg, that are equipped to load 100 car unit trains, allowing for faster and more efficient transport of materials. With two of these facilities, Fessenden and Carrington, located on the Canadian Pacific (CP), Carrington also on the Red River Valley & Western railways and Hamberg located on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) line, the Co-op is no longer tied to one railroad.
This capability opened new markets for Fessenden Co-op to keep their producers grain moving. This proved to be advantageous for the co-op the year the new facility in Hamberg was open. At a time when trains were difficult to get on the CP, the co-op was able to ship ten 100-car trains from Hamberg between September and December, utilizing the BNSF railway.
Fessenden Co-op has had seven managers in its 75-year history. They include R.M. Richardson, Earl Sholey, Arnold H. Berg, Lyle Wipf, Dennis Novacek, & Dave Rosscup. Current manager, Mark Hovland, who has served as general manager of the cooperative since February 2003, works with a team of about 80 full-time employees who are dedicated to serving its members. “We like to think of ourselves as a progressive co-op,” Hovland noted in an article written in U.S. Business Executive. “We do our best to retain and attract good employees and keep up with our resources to better serve our growers.”
The Fessenden Co-op board of directors includes Rick Olson, Eric Johnson, Curt Olson, Randy Silliman, Travis Long, Allen Heilman and Linus Allmaras. Olson serves as the president, Johnson secretary and Curt Olson, vice president.
The company has spent most of 2018 celebrating its 75th year in business, with the celebration culminating at its 75th annual meeting which was held on March 28. Fessenden Cooperative Association continues to grow to accommodate its service area with a strong set of facilities and services that help to keep the cooperative as a strong voice for growers in central North Dakota.
