San Vicente Cooperative Votes to Admit 47 New Farms as Dues Question Divides Members

The Regional Cooperative Council of San Vicente voted Thursday evening to admit 47 new smallholder farms to its membership, marking the largest single intake in three years. The vote passed by a margin of 61 to 38, with strong support from the council's leadership but vocal resistance from a faction of established members who fear the expansion will strain shared resources.

The real tension, however, emerged during the secondary motion on dues. A proposal to raise annual membership contributions by twelve percent—from 580 florins to 650 florins per farm—failed to reach the required two-thirds threshold, falling short by four votes. The increase was intended to cover climbing costs associated with federal compliance and paperwork processing, costs that have grown steadily since the Federal Office for Cooperative Affairs tightened documentation requirements in 2024.

Marcelino Ruiz, a coffee farmer from the cooperative's founding generation, said the vote reflected a genuine split between members who see growth as survival and those who believe the cooperative has lost its way. "We are admitting farms we cannot afford to serve," Ruiz said after the meeting. The council will convene again in October to revisit the dues question, but the failed vote signals that cost-sharing remains unresolved.