Ferme Panama et Fils awarded for their animal welfare efforts

At Ferme Panama et fils, animal welfare is a daily reality. It's evident in the energy and time they invest, far beyond what can be quantified. Cows are not only comfortable, but they are also physically and emotionally healthy.

Ferme Panama has distinguished itself thanks to a management system that allows lactating cows to spend as much time as possible on pasture, thus setting them up for success during the winter months spent in the tie-stall barn.

Thanks to Sophie and Dave, we can meet our promise of Better Dairy. Better World.

Agropur: A world-class business that operates on democratic principles

Meet our owners

Agropur’s 3,000 dairy farmer members are spread across five Canadian provinces. They are the owners of Agropur, under a business model inspired by the values of cooperation. This mode of operation, which requires a great deal of discipline, has enabled the organization to develop to its full economic potential and to help build a better world.

Contributing to Agropur’s success

Agropur’s members contribute actively to its development by exchanging ideas regularly with its board of directors and its management team through no less than 60 local or virtual meetings per year.

These meetings keep the members informed and give them a chance to be consulted, to express themselves, and to understand the issues facing their Cooperative. This way of doing things has been the basis for Agropur’s success ever since it was founded and is what gives the Cooperative its great strategic strength and cohesiveness. This is all the more important in a worldwide industry that is undergoing profound change, as are its customers and consumers.

Electing the board of directors

The members make and support the required decisions at the Cooperative’s annual general meeting, through a democratic process in which each member has one vote, regardless of the size of his or her farm.

The members elect delegates at regional meetings. At the annual general meeting, these delegates in turn elect the 13 individuals who will serve on the board of directors. To obtain complementary expertise and other points of view, the board also invites individuals to serve as guest members. There are two guest members on the current board.

Growing without losing touch

The role of the Solidarity Committee is to supervise and coordinate associational life, member services and member training. This committee is supported by a network of over 570 facilitators across the country. The facilitators not only provide members with information but also gather their opinions and comments. This distinctive structure keeps two-way lines of communication open between the Cooperative’s members and its managers. All these cooperative activities enable the organization and its members to grow without losing touch.

Agropur Member Relations is a professional team that offers the Cooperative’s members extensive expertise on various aspects of animal welfare and milk production, such as milking operations, bacterial loads and milk-storage practices. This team also provides various kinds of training for Agropur members.

Celebrating and encouraging excellence

Every year since 1988, Agropur’s Milk Quality Club of Excellence has recognized members who have qualified as Milk Quality Champions in their respective regions.

Young leaders who are ready to change the world

The young people who will be the dairy farmers and Agropur members of tomorrow receive very special attention from the Cooperative through several initiatives designed especially for them, including our Young Cooperative Leaders Program, Young Facilitators Network, and study tours.

Designed for people under age 35, the Young Cooperative Leaders Program takes one year to complete and includes activities such as visits to dairy processing plants and meetings with members of cooperatives in other industries. Its purpose is to integrate these young people into Agropur’s associational life. Lastly, the Young Facilitators Network has 130 members, the sons and daughters of current Agropur members who may eventually take over the family farm.

In 2019, Agropur created a new administrator position for youth under 35 years of age.  The position is intended to be a real opportunity for young members to become actively involved in the Cooperative's governance. The new administrator has the same rights and duties as the other administrators.