Cooperative federation

A co-operative federation or secondary co-operative is a co-operative in which all members are, in turn, co-operatives.^[1] Historically, co-operative federations have predominantly come in the form of co-operative wholesale societies and co-operative unions.^[2] Co-operative federations are a means through which co-operatives can fulfill the sixth Co-operative Principle, co-operation among co-operatives. The International Co-operative Alliance notes that “Co-operatives serve their members most effectively and strengthen the co-operative movement by working together through local, national, regional and international structures.”^[3]

Retail

According to co-operative economist Charles Gide, the aim of a co-operative wholesale society, which is owned by retail consumer co-operatives, is to arrange “bulk purchases, and, if possible, organise production.”^[2] The best historical examples of this were the English and Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Societies, which were the forerunners to the modern Co-operative Group.

Co-operative union

A second common form of co-operative federation is a co-operative union, whose objective (according to Gide) is “to develop the spirit of solidarity among societies and... in a word, to exercise the functions of a government whose authority , it is needless to say, is purely moral.”^[2] Co-operatives UK and the International Co-operative Alliance are examples of such arrangements.

Banking

see also: Cooperative banking, Credit union, History of credit unions, European Association of Co-operative Banks (EACB)

• Austria's Raiffeisen Zentralbank is a Cooperative banking with many branches in eastern Europe.
• Germany's Volksbanken or Raiffeisenbank are cooperative banks.
• France's Crédit Agricole is a multi-tiered network of primary and secondary co-operatives and hybrid co-operatives.
• In the UK, the Co-operative Bank is a joint stock retail and commercial bank, whose stock is wholly owned by the Co-operative Group, a hybrid primary and secondary co-operative.
• In the US, credit unions co-operatively own payment networks and financial advisers.

Agriculture

Regional agricultural co-operatives, such as Land O'Lakes and the former Farmland Industries, are co-operative federations owned by local farmers' co-operatives. Like the Co-operative Group (above), Land O'Lakes is actually a hybrid of a primary and secondary co-operative.^[4]

Co-operative party

In some countries with strong co-operative sectors, such as the UK, co-operatives have organized parliamentary political parties to represent their interests. The British Co-operative Party is an example of such an arrangement.

Other uses

Co-operatives whose member owners are businesses, such as retailers' co-operatives, are sometimes called secondary co-operatives, even when their members are not themselves co-operatives.^[5]

References

1. ^ "How to set up a Secondary Co-operative". http://www.upstart.coop/How%20to%20set%20up%20a%20secondary%20coop.pdf. Retrieved 2008-05-27. "A secondary co-operative is a co-operative business democratically controlled by its members, all of whom are themselves co-operatives and share certain aims or values in common. The secondary co-operative can be a way for these co-operatives to do things that help achieve their aims that they would not be able to do by themselves. Secondary co-operatives have been used in a number of sectors already – Credit Unions, Housing Co-operatives and Social Change Co-operatives for example." 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Gide, Charles; as translated from French by the Co-operative Reference Library, Dublin, Consumers' Co-operative Societies, Manchester: The Co-operative Union Limited, 1921, p. 122, ISBN 1116752611
3. ^ Statement on the Co-operative Identity. International Co-operative Alliance.
4. ^ Phil Kenkel, Oklahoma State University; Amy Hagen, Texas A&M University (2004). "Impact of the Farmland Bankrupty on Oklahoma Cooperatives". via Kansas State University. http://www.agecon.ksu.edu/accc/ncr194/Events/2004meeting/KenkelFarmland.pdf. Retrieved 2008-05-22. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ "What is a co-operative?". Wales Co-operative Centre. http://www.walescooperative.org/what-is-a-co-operative. 

See also

• List of co-operative federations