Local co-ops merge

The cooperation between farmers and ranchers in Hill and Blaine counties recently became a little stronger.

Chinook's Farmers Union Oil Co. and Havre's Cenex Harvest States Cooperative merged, effective March 8, to form Milk River Cooperative. The new co-op is a division of Cenex Harvest States Cooperatives.

General manager Dan Johnson said the merger should improve the co-op's service and bottom line.

"Hopefully we are more efficient and also offer more and better services," he said Thursday.

He said the merger was logical because modern transportation had shrunk the distance between them....