farmer-owned rice cooperative

Riceland Foods

Industry Food

A farmer-owned rice and grain cooperative selling mainstream grocery rice, rice bran oil, and rice products while also serving grower-members in Arkansas and Missouri. Riceland Foods scores well because ownership is comparatively aligned and governance has stronger accountability than peers, though ecological harm and toxic or materially harmful products still limit the evaluation.

Why this matters: Riceland is a strong staple-food entry because farmer ownership is tied to a cheap commodity food, though rice methane and arsenic concerns keep it from a clean A.

Letter grade B Qualified Medium confidence (AI) Rubric gcd-rubric-v1 Last reviewed May 10, 2026

Final Score 42* B - Qualified

BQUALIFIED42 pts

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

Base Material46

Bonus+0

Cap66No structure cap

After Cap46

Penalties-4

!Not Verified

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Evaluation Overview

B - Qualified

The score turns mainly on Ownership, with the largest penalty coming from Ecological Harm.

Strengths

Ownership7/10
Governance6/10
Extraction6/10

Penalties

Ecological Harm-2
High-Carbon Products-1
Toxic Products-1

Evidence state

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)
ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)
Linked claims5
Direct axis claims5
Coverage5/12

Scoring Axes

Axis	Score	Why this score
Ownership ? Control rights: shareholder-dominated at 0, worker cooperative control at 10.	7 / 10	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Ownership: there is some mission, member, producer, or public-interest constraint, but decisive control is not fully democratic. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1]
Governance ? Binding decision authority: centralized control at 0, democratic stakeholder control at 10.	6 / 10	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Governance: there are accountability mechanisms, but they stop short of broad democratic control. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1]
Extraction ? Surplus allocation, wage share, CEO pay ratio, margins, and structured extraction judgment.	6 / 10	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Extraction: the institution creates real value but still leaves room for rent extraction, unequal bargaining, or surplus capture. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1] context Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2]
Labor Sovereignty ? Worker power: coercive conditions at 0, co-determination or ownership at 7. Employee dissatisfaction matters only when source-backed evidence shows concrete limits on worker agency, such as coercive scheduling, retaliation, wage theft, harassment, unsafe conditions, suppression of worker voice, or extreme turnover.	4 / 7	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Labor Sovereignty: workers or participants have some protection or agency, but not enough binding power to control the relationship. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1]
Solidarity with the Unemployed ? Treatment of exits and nonworkers, including severance, redeployment, and non-competes.	4 / 7	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Solidarity with the Unemployed: some access, severance, retraining, openness, or mutual-aid value is present, but it is not central or durable. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1] context Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2]
Loss-Bearing Fidelity ? Willingness to absorb costs to preserve values, workers, users, and public obligations.	5 / 7	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods in the middle of Loss-Bearing Fidelity: there is some willingness to preserve obligations, but the record still leaves meaningful risk-shifting concerns. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1] context Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2]
Market Conduct ? Pricing fairness, switching costs, lock-in, and rent extraction.	4 / 5	Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. That places Riceland Foods high on Market Conduct: pricing, access, switching, and bargaining practices show restraint compared with ordinary rent-seeking competitors. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Linked evidence context Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2] context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1]
Product Integrity ? Preservation of quality rather than degradation for monetization.	5 / 5	Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. That places Riceland Foods high on Product Integrity: the core offering is genuinely useful and comparatively less dependent on traps, degradation, or harmful dependencies. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Linked evidence Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2]
Scale Integrity ? Whether growth improves or degrades fairness and accountability.	5 / 5	The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. The linked record identifies Riceland Foods as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. That places Riceland Foods high on Scale Integrity: growth appears compatible with accountability, quality, and stakeholder benefit. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Linked evidence context Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products. [1] context Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand. [2] context Rice production has material methane and water-management concerns, so Riceland retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: despite being a farmer cooperative. [3]

Penalties

Penalty	Applied	Why this penalty
Ecological Harm ? Footprint, trajectory, irreversibility, culpability, and scale, including whether ecological harm is central to the model and continued after credible notice. Range: -30 to 0.	-2	Rice production has material methane and water-management concerns, so Riceland retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: despite being a farmer cooperative. Rice production has material methane and water-management concerns, so Riceland retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: despite being a farmer cooperative. That warrants a limited Ecological Harm penalty because the institution causes or defends ecological damage that is more than incidental to the model. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence Rice production has material methane and water-management concerns, so Riceland retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: despite being a farmer cooperative. [3]
High-Carbon Products ? Core products, services, financing, or supply chains that materially depend on fossil-fuel combustion, high-emissions transport, industrial animal agriculture, meat, dairy, or other unusually carbon-intensive activity. This is scored separately from general ecological harm so ordinary consumers can see carbon-intensive product exposure directly. Range: -10 to 0.	-1	The product category is food and agriculture, but the profile centers staples, produce, grains, beverages, or baked goods rather than meat or dairy. Linked evidence Riceland Foods has lower-carbon food with residual exposure high-carbon product exposure based on its listed business model and current profile description: A farmer-owned rice and grain cooperative selling mainstream grocery rice, rice bran oil, and rice products while also serving grower-members in Arkansas and Missouri. Riceland Foods scores well because ownership is com… [5]
Toxic Products ? Current sale of products whose ordinary use, exposure, ingredients, residues, packaging, or formulation creates toxic, addictive, or consumer-safety risk. Food products receive at least light scrutiny for artificial colors, artificial flavors, petro-derived additives, pesticide residues, contaminants, endocrine-disrupting packaging, and ultra-processed formulation. Ordinary adult nightlife or alcohol service is not penalized by itself without evidence of predatory marketing, youth targeting, addiction-extractive design, or unusual product-safety misconduct. Range: -5 to 0.	-1	Rice can contain inorganic arsenic, with FDA guidance treating arsenic in rice and rice cereal as a food-safety concern; Riceland therefore retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty. Rice can contain inorganic arsenic, with FDA guidance treating arsenic in rice and rice cereal as a food-safety concern; Riceland therefore retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty. That warrants a limited Toxic Products penalty because ordinary use, exposure, ingredients, residues, packaging, or formulation creates material toxic, addictive, or consumer-safety risk. The value is limited because the linked record shows a real problem but not one that dominates the profile on this axis. Linked evidence Rice can contain inorganic arsenic, with FDA guidance treating arsenic in rice and rice cereal as a food-safety concern; Riceland therefore retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty. [4]

Bonus Credits

No bonus credits applied in this version.

Confidence Basis

Confidence is computed from the evidence trail and review state, not typed into the profile by hand.

Medium 68/100

5 verified linked claims 5 direct axis claims 0 disputed claims 5/12 components covered

This confidence label measures the source-backed evidence trail. AI-scaffolded scores remain tentative until human review.

Claim confidence 16/20

5 verified linked claims

Source quality 13/18

Best source per verified claim, weighted by institutional reliability

Direct axis-specific claims 6/18

5 direct claims across 12 active components

Dispute load 12/12

0 disputed claims on this entity

Recency 10/10

Newest accepted timestamp: May 13, 2026

Reviewer status 7/12

Human-reviewed components score higher than AI scaffolding

Component coverage 4/10

5/12 evidence-bearing components have direct support

Evidence State

Profile stateAI draft / human-pending

VerificationUnverified

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)

ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)

Correction routeUse “Challenge this rating” for factual errors, missing counterevidence, source problems, or calculation mistakes.

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Claims and Sources

Claims are the evidence record. Each claim needs a source link, axis category, status, confidence level, and timestamp before it can support a score.

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

1Riceland Foods describes itself as a farmer-owned cooperative serving thousands of farmer-members and selling rice and grain products.

Ownership Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 10, 2026

AI scaffold

Riceland: Who We AreGeneral web source · 58%

2Riceland sells rice, rice products, and pantry grain staples through retail and foodservice channels, making its core product a lower-cost staple rather than a luxury brand.

Product Integrity Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 10, 2026

AI scaffold

Riceland productsGeneral web source · 58%

3Rice production has material methane and water-management concerns, so Riceland retains conduct relevant to the Ecological Harm penalty: despite being a farmer cooperative.

Ecological Harm Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 10, 2026

AI scaffold

EPA: Rice cultivation methanePrimary public record · 100%

4Rice can contain inorganic arsenic, with FDA guidance treating arsenic in rice and rice cereal as a food-safety concern; Riceland therefore retains conduct relevant to the Toxic Products penalty.

Toxic Products Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 10, 2026

AI scaffold

FDA: Inorganic arsenic in rice and rice productsPrimary public record · 100%

5Riceland Foods has lower-carbon food with residual exposure high-carbon product exposure based on its listed business model and current profile description: A farmer-owned rice and grain cooperative selling mainstream grocery rice, rice bran oil, and rice products while also serving grower-members in Arkansas and Missouri. Riceland Foods scores well because ownership is com…

High Carbon Products Verified Medium confidence Human-reviewed May 11, 2026

Riceland Foods public siteGeneral web source · 58%
Our World in Data: Environmental Impacts of Food ProductionGeneral web source · 58%

Alternatives

Competitors

AGOOD61 Three Stone Hearth worker-owned community-supported kitchen · same market AGOOD60 Cheese Board Collective worker cooperative · same market AGOOD60 ChiFresh Kitchen worker-owned prepared-meal cooperative · same market AGOOD59 Alvarado Street Bakery worker-owned bakery · same market AGOOD59 Arizmendi Bakery worker cooperative bakery · same market AGOOD59 Rainbow Grocery Cooperative worker cooperative grocer · same market AGOOD58 Equal Exchange worker cooperative · same market AGOOD58 Niles Pie Company worker-owned pie shop and bakery · same market

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