Growmark Inc. and Southern States Cooperative announced Aug. 7 plans to close on a transaction Sept. 1, 2020, that aligns the organizations operationally to yield increased innovation, growth and returns for the farmer-owners of both cooperative systems.

Growmark will assume the wholesale agronomy and energy (fuel and propane) assets of Southern States, along with several retail locations serving farmers in Delaware and Maryland. Growmark will provide crop inputs, fuels, propane and a variety of customer support and marketing services to Southern States and its member cooperatives. They, in turn, will continue to deliver custom solutions with access to Growmark’s product mix, distribution expertise and drive for innovation.

“Growmark’s vision is to be the best agricultural cooperative system in North America, and this partnership enables our organizations to further that goal together,” Growmark chief executive officer Jim Spradlin said. “We are committed to delivering an unsurpassed customer experience to the patrons we serve across North America. The cooperative model is uniquely positioned to deliver that, so this combination of efforts is great news for farmers invested in our cooperative organizations."

Jeff Stroburg, president and CEO of Southern States, added that the co-op is “proud to partner with Growmark to extend our combined services to our members. Growmark is recognized as one of the premier cooperatives in the nation, and Southern States is excited to partner with them in strengthening our capabilities to serve our customer-owners and our member cooperatives."

Growmark, with fiscal 2019 sales of $8.7 billion, provides agronomy and energy products and services as well as grain marketing and a variety of support services throughout North America.

Southern States is a Richmond, Va.-based cooperative that serves retail and wholesale outlets across 21 states and provides a wide range of farm inputs, including fertilizer, seed, livestock feed, pet food, animal health supplies, petroleum products and various other items for the farm and home.