Today, Co-op in Tennessee includes TFC and 55 member cooperatives. Each of TFC's member Co-ops is a separate, independent cooperative business owned and controlled by farmer members in their home counties. The nearly 150 Co-op retail outlets, which operate in 83 of Tennessee's 95 counties, serve more than half a million customers across the state. Five member Co-ops also have branch retail stores in neighboring states of Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina, and Mississippi. TFC also has associate members in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Virginia. TFC is a federated cooperative system, which means there is a pyramid of ownership. The farmer members own their local Co-ops; those local Co-ops, in turn, own TFC. This gives the farmer true ownership of his or her own farm supply and service organization. Any savings above the cost of doing business are returned to the members on a patronage basis. Because savings are distributed locally, the money remains in the area where the Co-op is located. Of course, you don't have to be a member of the Co-op to shop there. Co-op offers quality products for everyone! At the local level, the farmer members are responsible for electing a local board of directors, which establishes that particular Co-op's policies and employs the general manager. The daily operation of the business is under the direction and supervision of the general manager, who answers to the board of directors.