Farm Credit to distribute another record in patronage checks
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Louisville-based Farm Credit Mid-America has announced it will return $255 million in cash patronage to eligible customers across its entire footprint beginning Monday, including $66 million in Indiana. Patronage is a portion of a cooperative’s net earnings that are returned to its customer-owners.
Farm Credit Mid-America is a farmer-owned and led cooperative that serves producers in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.
The amount of patronage a customer-owner receives is proportionate to its level of transaction of eligible business with the cooperative in 2022. Producers typically use the funds to pay for new equipment, initial operating costs for the upcoming season, and payroll, among other uses.
“As a farmer-owned cooperative, our customers have the opportunity to share in our success,” Steve Witges, senior vice president of agricultural lending for Indiana, said in a news release. “Patronage week is quite exciting because patronage-eligible customers get to enjoy the financial benefits of being owners of our cooperative.”
This year’s $255 million total tops last year’s record of $230 million. Farm Credit said it has doled out $1.25 million in patronage since the program’s inception in 2016.