Recently, the board of directors from Select Sires four individual cooperatives voted unanimously to merge together as one full-service A.I. cooperative representing 25 U.S. states and the country of Mexico. The four cooperatives that will make up this merger are:
- All West/Select Sires
- COBA/Select Sires
- Select Sires MidAmerica
- Minnesota/Select Sires
The new cooperative, Select Sires Member Cooperative (SSMC), will go into effect on October 1, 2023.
“As a supporter of cooperatives, my goal was to help create something that would allow us to always remain a member-owned cooperative. We would be nothing without our members,” said Brett Gibbons, President of Select Sires MidAmerica, in a company press release. “This merger allows us to do just that, and from the beginning, it was evident that all of us wanted the same thing. This process was successful because of the unity shared amongst co-ops and more importantly, the general managers.”
Select Sires states that this merger process has been board led with directors feeling that this is the next logical step in an ever-evolving industry.
“We have four cooperatives that are in a strong financial position and have chosen to take a very proactive course to ensure that our members will continue to receive the top-level products and services that they’ve always enjoyed,” said Chad Steinberger, COBA/Select Sires President.
Chris Sigurdson, current General Manager of COBA/Select Sires and Minnesota/Select Sires, has been selected to serve as the chief executive officer of Select Sires Member Cooperative.
“There is so much synergy between the boards and Chris Sigurdson, as well as fellow current General Managers, Devin Albrecht and Rory White. This has been true ever since we began this process,” said Jerry Lanting, All West/Select Sires President. “We, as chairmen of each cooperative, have had in-depth discussions with all of them, and can confirm that they are excited to work together to make the cooperative even better for the members.”
The company states that the headquarters office will reside in Columbus, Ohio, with the Logan, Utah, office serving as a joint operational headquarters. All other present locations will remain operational at this time.
“I’m extremely excited about the future and the vision of the four cooperatives working together as one. It has been a lot of hard work, but all parties involved have worked so well together and created an awesome new entity,” said Jim Barthel, Minnesota/Select Sires President. “I am looking forward to the success of Select Sires Member Cooperative for its members and employees alike.”
