10.10 Landholdings restricted.

1. Notwithstanding section 9H.4, a farmers cooperative limited liability company may hold agricultural land in this state if it meets all of the following conditions:

a. The farmers cooperative limited liability company does not hold an interest in agricultural land of more than six hundred forty acres.

b. The farmers cooperative limited liability company does not produce, including by planting or harvesting, forage or grain on agricultural land in which the farmers cooperative limited liability company holds an interest. However, the farmers cooperative limited liability company may enter into an agreement under a lease or production contract with a person to produce the forage or grain, if the farmers limited liability company does not receive forage or grain in payment under the agreement. The lease or contract may specify the type of forage or grain that must be produced and provide that the farmers cooperative limited liability company has a right to purchase the forage or grain on the same terms and conditions as the highest bona fide offer received by the person for the forage or grain, within a period agreed to by the parties to the lease or production contract.

c. Less than fifty percent of the interest in the farmers cooperative limited liability company is held by members which are parties to intra-company loan agreements. If more than one type of membership interest is established, including any series as provided in section 489.1201 or any class or group as provided in section 489.1201, less than fifty percent of the interest in each type of membership shall be held by members which are parties to intra-company loan agreements.

d. The farmers cooperative limited liability company does not own swine or contract for the care and feeding of swine, if a member of the farmers cooperative limited liability company is a regional cooperative association.

2. a. An interest in agricultural land held by a farmers cooperative limited liability company shall be attributable as an interest in agricultural land held by a member cooperative association of the farmers cooperative limited liability company. The member cooperative association shall be deemed to hold an interest in agricultural land held by the farmers cooperative limited liability company in proportion to the interest that the member cooperative association holds in the limited liability company.

b. Except to the extent provided in this paragraph, a member holding agricultural land by attribution shall be subject to landholding restrictions imposed pursuant to the Code, including sections 9H.4, 9H.5, 9I.3, and 501.103. However, notwithstanding section 9H.4, a cooperative association may hold an interest in any number of farmers entities, if the total number of acres held by the farmers entities and attributable to the cooperative association is six hundred forty acres or less.

c. The member cooperative association’s proportionate interest shall be calculated by multiplying the number of acres of agricultural land held by the farmers cooperative limited liability company by the percentage interest in the limited liability company held by the cooperative association as a member.

3. In the event of a transfer of an interest in the farmers cooperative limited liability company by operation of law, the farmers cooperative limited liability company may disregard the transfer for purposes of determining compliance with subsection 1 for a period of two years after the transfer.

98 Acts, ch 1110, §110, 301; 2008 Acts, ch 1162, §127, 154, 155

Referred to in §10.11