We are a MEMBER-OWNED co-op, responsible to PEOPLE and PLANET.
1976
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
• Frontier began as a
• Added first organic products to line • Moved operations to Fairfax, IA • Began bottling essential oils • Incorporated as a cooperative owned by customers
• Appointed first Board of Directors • Built facility in Norway, IA • Established on-site childcare and café • Became a certified organic processor
• Launched Frontier Co-op brand of spices • Bought Aura Cacia aromatherapy brand • Opened coffee roasting plant in Vinton, IA
• Created the Simply Organic brand • Established the Well Earth program
• Purchased North Liberty facility • Purchased Belle Plaine warehouse facility • Innovation Center built at our Norway headquarters
• Created the Plant Boss brand • Aura Cacia Positive Change Project surpassed $1 Million in contributions
two-person operation in a river cabin in Eastern Iowa
OUR HISTORY
Frontier Co-op (originally named “Frontier Herbs”) began as a two-person operation in 1976 in a cabin along the Cedar River in Eastern Iowa. The business was originally structured as a cooperative that supplied wholesale herbs and spices to our mem- ber-owners, repackaging several hundred varieties of herbs and spices into smaller one- and two-pound bags. Those member-owners then resold these products in bulk to their retail consumers. Rapid growth resulted in the purchase of a ten-acre parcel of Iowa farmland in 1982 near Norway, Iowa, and the construction of a 21,000-square foot facility, which today serves as our cooperative’s headquarters. Plant expansions in 1984, 1988, and 1993 increased this facility to over 85,000 square feet. Today, Frontier Co-op owns an additional 50 acres of land adjacent to the main facility, 22 acres of which are main- tained as tallgrass prairie. The co-op subsequently purchased and remodeled facilities in the nearby Iowa towns of Urbana, North Liberty, and Belle Plaine. In 1981, Frontier Co-op elected its first Board of Directors. Still focused on bulk, our Frontier Co-op brand had been an industry leader in rec- ognizing the value of organic agriculture and promoting organically grown products
since the 1980s. In 1988, we introduced a Frontier Co-op line of packaged spices that developed into a significant sales contributor and laid important groundwork for the establishment of the Simply Organic ® brand in 2002. Simply Organic quickly became the fastest growing brand in natural seasonings and the leading brand in the explosive- ly growing category of organic seasonings. Early in its history, Frontier Co-op had also accommodated its members by buying bulk quantities of essential oils and rebottling them into .33-ounce glass bottles. This line grew steadily as the concept and practice of aromatherapy became increasingly popular. In 1993, Frontier Co-op acquired Aura Cacia ® , a fast-growing essential oils and essential oils-based personal care products company based out of Weaverville, CA. Today, the brand has grown to become the clear market leader in natural health outlets nationwide. Over more than four decades, Frontier Co-op has grown to distribute our products through a wide range of customers: distributors, wholesale members, wholesale non-members, and retail customers that place orders via phone, mail and the co-op’s websites. The bulk of our sales continue to be to retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
2022 Social Responsibility Report | 11
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