How To Start a Cooperative

This guide outlines the process of organizing a cooperative business and provides information on the potential steps involved and some important aspects of cooperative development. A cooperative business is briefly described, including its structure and basic principles. Twelve steps involved in most cooperative development projects are introduced and explained. Important considerations—such as practitioner principles, pitfalls to avoid, cooperative capitalization, legal aspects of cooperative development, and general rules for success—are presented. This information should provide a reader with a comprehensive understanding of the cooperative development process. While this report focuses on agricultural cooperative development, it also contains information that is pertinent to non-agricultural applications. The cooperative business structure, shown to be successful in agriculture, has also been useful in helping others obtain benefits or provide needed services in areas such as housing, utilities, finance, healthcare, homecare, childcare, grocery retailing, manufacturing, business support services, and more