Discovery Co-op held its annual meeting Wednesday and it was another successful year in 2015.
The board of directors report was released at the 83rd annual meeting and it announced Discovery Co-op will be returning $1.65 million to their member owners this year.
The allocation for the fiscal year 2015 (which ended Jan. 31, 2016) was announced based on purchases, and it is as follows: 2.50 per cent on agricultural purchases, 3.50 per cent on fuel purchases, one per cent on Marketplace purchases, .5 per cent on consumer purchases, one per cent on fertilizer, five per cent on oil and grease, seven per cent on propane and two per cent on farm hardware and feed purchases.
In 2015, Discovery Co-op achieved sales of $104 million, the same as the year before. According to board president Randy Graham, maintaining this sales level was a major accomplishment given the downturn in the price of fuel.
"We all know what fuel's done, 27 per cent deflation in 2015," said Graham. "To have our sales hold the same, I think is absolutely amazing.”
For 2015, there was $1,856,947 in equity paid back to members who had moved, reached age 70 or reached their equity cap of $17,250, to estates and toward their eighth consecutive general cash repayment amounting to $376,000.
Approximately $196,000 was donated to support clubs and activities in the trading area.
There was heavy investment into Co-op facilities in 2015, with the investment into fixed assets and major repairs amounting to $12.8 million.
According to Discovery Co-op's five-year plan, capital and property upgrades will continue. Asset purchases totalling $2.2 million are planned for 2016 with the main item being an upgrade to the Cut Knife card lock facility.
The past year there were upgrades at several locations, including the new gas bar and convenience store in Battleford. The Co-op is also finishing renovating the home centre in North Battleford at Territorial Place Mall.
"We will continue to develop our existing relationships and explore new opportunities to work with community and industry," General Manager Mike Nord stated in his management report to members.
"Most importantly, we will continue to reinvest in our communities and our people to create real value."
The other piece of big news from the meeting is that Discovery Co-op will be getting a new president. Randy Graham has been elected to serve on the board of Federated Co-operatives Ltd., which prohibits him from holding an executive position with the Discovery Co-op board.
Graham has stepped down as president, but he will stay on the board for the rest of his term.
"It's been 12 wonderful years," said Graham. "We've had some challenges but with it comes many, many rewards."
As for his new role, "I'm absolutely thrilled and exciting to be representing a much larger district now on the Federated Co-op board side. There's definitely going to be huge challenges but also huge rewards there as well."
