A strategic re-focus for Ashburton-based Ruralco will bring the farmer co-operative back to its roots in the local farming community, where it will no longer actively seek business connections beyond the Canterbury region.
Ruralco was established in Mid Canterbury as the Ashburton Trading Society (ATS) in 1963 by a group of local farmers who were looking to lower input costs for their farming operations.
The grassroots focus began to move in 2013 with a joint card venture with Ravensdown, followed four years later with the launch of Ruralco as the customer-facing brand replacing ATS.
The divestment of ATS’s card and Mobil fuel business into Ruralco left ATS with the trading divisions of farm supplies, electricity, fertiliser and ATS Seed. Ruralco’s strategy to re-focus to stay local first, announced this week, takes the co-operative back to its original intent.
“It is a change of direction from our previous national growth strategy which was well intentioned in a very different market environment,” Ruralco chair Sir David Carter said.
“The decision to consolidate our focus and return to our original vision followed careful consideration by the board and Ruralco’s executive team following feedback from both shareholders and merchants.”
Carter acknowledged Ruralco has had different strategies from time to time over the years, but said it’s original intent to make farming life easier for its shareholders remained.
“We have stayed true to this function, and we want to continue strengthening those ties across our core territory of Mid Canterbury and the wider Canterbury region.”
Ruralco chief executive Tony Aitken said this is a deliberate move back to Ruralco being more shareholder and farmer focused.
“Our purpose is to keep local farmers thriving for generations to come by offering real value with the latest innovation in farm supplies, services, and expert advice.
“Mid Canterbury is at the heart of our homeland, so it is logical we retain our focus locally,” Aitken said.
“We are very fortunate to have such a loyal and parochial support base.
“Our size and local focus gives us opportunities that many companies do not have; that is to be very connected and responsive to our shareholders.
“We are small, nimble, and local.”
Over the coming months Ruralco is rolling out new initiatives that highlight the renewed local focus.
These include Ruralco-initiated local farmer reference group meetings to identify how best to support farming communities.
There will also be exclusive shareholder and merchant networking events that inform and encourage collaboration.
A Spend for Your School monthly promotion allows locals to win $500 for their primary school by using their Ruralco card.
The Ashburton based farmer co-operative reported a $2.1 million loss for the year 2023. The group’s turnover for the year was $293.3m compared to $279.1m in 2022.
At the time of the annual result announcement in October, Carter said the 2023 fiscal year had been challenging.
“The challenge has been to respond and adjust to these changes and commitments, resulting in our business moving from a growth strategy to a more consolidated approach, which has seen Ruralco consider all costs wherever necessary.”
