Show Farmers Buy and Sell Gas Oil Cooperatively Farmers cooperative o oil I stations stations lubricating handling gasoline kerosene a and d lu- lu oils have multiplied In the I Middle Western States in recent years two Fifty avo active organizations are a e doing business in Minnesota 20 In Wisconsin 14 1 in Iowa 3 in South Dakota and 1 In North North Dakota says the Unit United d States Department of Agriculture ofA A Some of these compan compan- companies ies ies have paid patronage dividen dividends s amounting to several times ther ori- ori original ori original ginal investment lubricating Since gasoline kerosene and 1 cating quantities oils i s are usEd jn in large ties by most farmers oil busi- busi business the ness is is said to lend itself readily to toI the cooperative the plan Some of I companies ics do simply a wagon tank tank business while others operate service service stations station In most o of the companies companies all the stockholders are farmers Each stockholder according to to the Rochdale plan has only one vote re- re re regardless ardless of the number of shares he holds The Thc shares usually have a apar have par value of 25 The companies companies not followed n a policy of price price cutting but have found their chief source of profits is reduced service costs It is said that the wasteful duplication andor of service stations and or of g gasoline soline delivery trucks has been reduced in communities where cooperative cooper oil companies operate The oldest of the cooperative oil Cottonwood Cot companies in Minnesota is tho tha Cot Cot- Oil Co in Lyon County This concern which was organized in 1921 I has been extremely successful The second oil company was formed by Steele County farmers I byI in in 1922 ia- ia and anu has paid to its members in in patronage dividends Minnesota An overhead organization the Min Min- Min op Co-op Oil Co was formed in 1926 to serve as a purchasing agent for federated local oil cooperatives This fed fed- fed concern in 1927 did a total business amounting to more than In 1928 its total business amounted to approximately Besides supplying member units with v petroleum products the federation helps to organize new local associations installs systems and maintains an auditing service service |