Given the right management, cooperatives are the best business model yet developed.

Matt Beaton is a fifth-generation cranberry grower from Wareham, Massachusetts. He owns and operates Sure-Cran Services, Inc. a custom cranberry bog management company. He also co-owns Beaton’s, Inc., which owns and manages an additional 170 acres of cranberry bogs. Over the course of a day, he and his team manage more than 500 acres of bogs. 

In addition to his roles as a grower and business owner, Matt previously served on the board of Farm Credit East, including as its chair.

Cooperative Spirit

A true believer in the power of the cooperative, Matt says that, given the right management, cooperatives are the best business model yet developed and Farm Credit is an excellent example. 

Matt has seen, first hand, the important role that each and every member of Farm Credit East plays in the governance of the cooperative. Each customer-owner is granted a vote and the resulting equality of power allows everyone’s voice to have a place in the discussion. 

Common Ground

Matt also values the way in which all members of Farm Credit are farmers. He finds strength in their common understanding of agriculture and their mutual comprehension of one another’s needs and challenges. 

As he said, “We’re all farmers. We know our neighbors, so we get it. No matter how good things are or how bad things are, this partnership approach is quite effective.”