Value Added Products Co-operative
Alva, Oklahoma
Energy Efficiency
Section 9006 Grant: $82,394
2004
Value Added Products (VAP) is a farmer-owned cooperative that adds value to locally-grown wheat by producing a line of self-rising frozen dough products including pizza crusts, breads and pastries. The cooperative began from scratch just a few years ago and raised over $9 million in equity from over 900 different people. Working with the State of Oklahoma, USDA Rural Development which provided a loan guarantee through its B&I program and local banks, they raised the remaining funds and set out to convert an old Wal-Mart store into a processing facility.
VAP also has received, appropriately, a USDA Value Added Producer Grant, to meet initial working capital requirements.
All of this investment has gone to good use as VAP is now doing over $19 million in sales and has created 70 manufacturing jobs, making it a major employer in this town of 5,000.