Arkansas Ag Co-op Hailed as Economic Success

November 8, 1999

President Clinton toured the Hermitage Tomato Cooperative in Hermitage, AR, and pronounced it a model of economic success in a struggling sector of the nation's rural economy. Faced with bankruptcy in 1996, the co-op was rescued in part by $4 million in loan guarantees from USDA.

USDA also negotiated an agreement for the cooperative with Burger King for the sale of tomatoes to the fast-food chain. Hermitage is a town of fewer than 700 people.

"Before they formed a cooperative and purchased this plant, these Hermitage tomato farmers were tiny fish in a huge sea and their outlook was grim," said Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman. "Now their future is bright as sales are soaring to major customers such as Burger King and national grocery chains."

Clinton also announced an agreement under which Burger King's purchasing agent will buy up to 3.2 million pounds of cucumbers from the Mississippi Association of Cooperatives, a group of minority-owned co-ops in the Mississippi Delta.

Glickman also said USDA is finalizing an additional $5 million in loan guarantees to help Hermitage expand its packing operations, build a convenience store and farm supply outlet and create more local jobs. He said the cooperative also is experimenting with greenhouse tomatoes which would enable it to expand its growing season to nine months out of the year.

The National Bankers Association also has signed an agreement with USDA to provide $18 million in credit to qualified, minority-owned businesses and limited resource farmers and ranchers, said Glickman.