NCFC Celebrates National Agriculture Day, Highlights Role of Farmer Cooperatives in Strengthening Rural America

Washington, D.C. (March 24, 2026) - The National Council of Farmer Cooperatives (NCFC) today joined agricultural organizations across the country in celebrating National Agriculture Day, recognizing the farmers, ranchers, and cooperatives who help provide the safe, abundant, and affordable food, fiber, fuel and renewable products Americans depend on every day.

Observed each year, National Agriculture Day is an opportunity to increase public understanding of how food and fiber products are produced and to highlight agriculture's essential role in maintaining a strong economy.

"National Ag Day is a reminder that agriculture touches every American, every day," said NCFC President and CEO Duane Simpson. "Farmer cooperatives are a central part of that story-helping producers compete in a global marketplace, strengthening supply chains, and keeping economic value rooted in rural communities."

Farmer cooperatives give producers real market power in an increasingly consolidated marketplace by providing scale, bargaining strength, and access to services and technologies that would otherwise be out of reach. At the same time, co-ops help connect local production to national and international markets, improving food security and supply-chain resilience.

Across the country, farmer-owned cooperatives support more than a quarter-million jobs and reinvest billions of dollars each year in rural infrastructure, services, and community development. Their producer-governed structure ensures that decisions are made close to the farm and that value generated in agriculture stays in the communities where it is produced.

"Cooperatives reflect the best of the American free-enterprise system," Simpson added. "They are private-sector, producer-led solutions that help keep family farms viable, support the next generation of producers, and strengthen the rural economies that depend on agriculture."

National Agriculture Day also encourages Americans to better understand the role agriculture plays in daily life and to consider the importance of agricultural careers in feeding a growing world.

"Today-and every day-we thank America's farmers and ranchers for the work they do to feed, fuel, and clothe our nation," Simpson said. "Farmer co-ops will continue to be valued partners with them to ensure U.S. agriculture remains strong for generations to come."