Board of Directors

Paul Berning lives and farms in St. Michael, MN. The Bernings have 280 milk cows and farm 600 acres of corn and alfalfa. Paul is a past 3 year board member of the Wright County ADA, Vice President of the STMA Youth Hockey for 7 years, Player Development member of the STMA Youth Baseball and a 5 year leader of the 4-H Project. Paul is also a member of the Knights of Columbus in Albertville and an St. Alberts Church Usher. Paul is married to Stacy and they have 4 Children; Blake 13, Brandon 12, Brady 10 and Isabelle 4.

“You have a say in the co-op if you want it,” says director Mark Carlson, who notes that many members have little interest in co-op governance, but still want the co-op’s services. On the board’s role, he says, “(The members) can be assured that we are looking out for their interests.”

Mark joined the C.A.P. Propane Plus board in 1992, serving as secretary from 1993 until C.A.P.-Trico’s 2007 merger with Federated Co-ops. He is also a clerk on the Silver Township board. In the past, Mark has served on the Moose Lake Co-op board and on his local church board.

For 38 years, Mark has been employed by the State of Minnesota. For the past 15 years, he has supervised a program called Moose Tracks, which provides work for people with disabilities. Mark has also coached varsity softball for 12 years. Married for 38 years, he and his wife, Lucia, live on a farm that has been in the family since 1892. The couple has three daughters, a son and five grandchildren.

Glenn Lood comes from a family of great cooperators who sold all their milk and marketed their cash grain through the regional co-ops. So when his Dad stepped down from the Isanti Co-op board, Glenn readily agreed to replace him. Having served on the Central Rivers board and now as a Federated Co-ops director, Glenn sees much opportunity.

“We have a very strong co-op and I can see great possibilities in both agricultural and energy marketing,” he states. “But we have to make sure we stay strong and don’t sit on our laurels.” Glenn would like to see Federated adopt more ground-breaking concepts like the propane rail terminal at Cambridge. “We have to look at the future and be innovative, now that we’re a leader in our communities.”

Glenn retired from dairying in 1996 and rents out much of his land, but still raises corn, soybeans, hay, and wildlife food plots. He and his wife, Karen, a registered nurse, have three adult children: one son and two daughters.

“An independent company can pull out of a market if it’s not profitable, but a co-op stays,” says Pete Ripka when asked why member-owned businesses like Federated Co-ops are important. “Instead of making money for an individual or a company, co-ops focus on maintaining strong businesses that can provide their members with a reliable supply of agronomy and energy products.”

Pete has served at various times on the boards of Mille Lacs Ag Service, Central Rivers Cooperative, and Federated Co-ops, Inc. As a long-time director on the American Dairy Association board of Kanabec County, Pete currently serves as its chairman. He is also a South Fork Township supervisor.

Pete and his brother, Steve, milk 180 cows. They raise all of their replacement heifers, and crop about 700 acres south of Ogilvie. The Federated Co-ops director has two daughters and two sons. When he is not working on the dairy farm, Pete can usually be found with his wife, Stacy, attending one of his children’s sporting events.

Todd Steffen ran for the Kanabec Co-op board in 1999 because he had an investment in the co-op. “I thought I would take my turn and help run it,” he states, adding, “When you’re a farmer looking in, you wonder why they do the things they do.” Now that he has served on Federated Co-ops board since 2000, he understands those decisions better. “The co-op needs to survive to continue serving its members,” he states.

Having also served as a township supervisor and as chairman of the planning commission, Todd believes co-ops are still important. True, the company has grown and the customer base is more diversified, says Todd, but Federated Co-ops is still a good company that looks out for the patron. “They give the profits back to the customer, and that’s something a private business doesn’t do,” he points out.

Todd and his Dad, Bob, raise corn, beans, wheat, and feeder cattle on a farm south of Mora. He and his wife of 20 years, Sharon, have three daughters: Chelsea, Katie, and Mariah.