While world leaders met in Brisbane, representatives from the country’s co-operative and mutual sector hosted their own Leaders’ Summit, which brought together chief executives, directors and senior management from leading co-operatives and mutual, as well as leaders from the broader business community.
The Summit, organised by the Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutuals (BCCM), took place on 17-18 November in Sydney. Co-operatives account for 6% of Australia’s earnings. Unveiled at the Summit, the 2014 National Mutual Economy Report reveals that the top 100 Australian co-operative and mutual businesses had a combined turnover of AU $104bn in the financial year 2012/2013.
The top 100 data is based on a study commissioned by BCCM and carried out by the University of Western Australia. The country’s farmer-owned co-operatives came on top of the list. CBH Group is the country’s biggest co-operative by turnover with AU $2.8bn, followed by Murray Goulburn with AU $2.39bn. Agriculture is the second largest sector by turnover of co-operatives and mutual in the top 100 after insurance.
“Australia has 1,700 member owned businesses providing numerous benefits to their 13m members. We are pleased to highlight the contributions of co-operatives and mutual and the ways in which they excel in creating shared value by reinvesting all profits back into the economy through their members,” said Andrew Crane, chair of BCCM and chief executive of CBH Group.
This year Dr Crane has represented the co-operative sector at the B20 Summit as part of the Australian Business 20 Committee. The Business 20 (B20) is a forum through which the private sector produces policy recommendations for the annual meeting of the G20 leaders.
“Co-operatives and mutual are also big investors in Australian infrastructure from ports, rail and irrigation systems, to road, housing and manufacturing plants. Mutual ownership of infrastructure was recognised in the B20’s recommendations to the G20 leaders,” added Dr Crane.
Melina Morrison, chief executive of BCCM also said: “The role of co-operatives and mutual in a sustainable economy is starting to become part of mainstream Government thinking. The Federal Government’s Agricultural Competitiveness Green Paper recommends the development of more farmer-owned co-operatives to ensure sustainable pricing at the farm gate and more competition in the supply chain”.
Photo: (L-R) Andrew Crane, BCCM Chair & CEO, CBH Group; Melina Morrison, CEO, BCCM; Nick Xenophon, Independent Senator for South Australia.
