In Wisconsin, "State growers stand by Ocean Spray, Cranberry producers divided over co-op's fate"

11/28/99 Tom Daykin's article in today's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel describes the differing viewpoints between Ocean Spray cranberry grower/owners in Wisconsin and cooperative members in Massachusetts and on the west coast about the decision not to pursue a sale or merger of the company.

Greg Fanning, president of the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers' Association and who operates the Fanning Cranberry Company which is a part of Ocean Spray, told the Journal Sentinel that this was because Wisconsin cranberry bogs are much larger and more efficient. He states that "the bottom line of that is many of those (Massachusetts) operations have been operating under tighter margins for some time. They're feeling the pinch even worse than we are here. They are much more aggressively seeking a fix that will help them out of a tight spot sooner." Fanning adds "I'm still sort of reserving judgment yet until I get more facts, figures and information about the board's decision. I do know that our directors have been working very hard to try to find a solution that will benefit the most shareholders within the company."

Link to article HERE