Farmers Win, Five Star Cooperatives Cancel Merger

After two years of discussions and planning and two voting periods, the Boards of Directors for the Farmers Win and Five Star cooperatives have agreed to stop the proceedings on the merger of the businesses.

According to Iowa state law, both cooperatives would need to achieve a 50 percent-plus-one quorum before then achieving a two-thirds majority vote to approve the deal. During the first voting period, Five Star cooperative was successful in achieving both of these voting requirements, however, Farmers Win narrowly missed the two-third majority vote in the first voting period, sending the merger back for a second vote. Again, the co-op achieved the first quorum, however, failed to achieve a two-thirds majority in the second vote. The boards of both cooperatives expressed an understanding of the importance of participation in the process, and acknowledged the will of the voters.

Both cooperatives maintain strong financial standing, and will continue to operate independently of each other as the management and leadership teams of each business continue to work to identify opportunities for continued growth.

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