Minnesota › Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting › 100 to 249 participants
Form 5500 statement · plan year 1 Jan 2024 to 31 Dec 2024
Co-Op 401(k) Plan
Sponsored by Lakes Area Cooperative, Perham, MN
Form 5500 information is as filed by the plan administrator with the Department of Labor and may be amended. Figures reflect the plan year shown, not current balances. Form 5500 contains no individual account balances. Look up the original filing at EFAST2.
Co-Op 401(k) Plan is a 401(k) plan sponsored by Lakes Area Cooperative of Perham, Minnesota. For the plan year ending 31 Dec 2024 it reported 229 participants, 170 of them active, and net assets of $8.3M.
Net assets came to $36,352 per participant, well below the $60,185 median for defined contribution plans with 100 to 249 participants and below the $42,336 median for defined contribution plans in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting. The figure is an average across everyone in the plan, including former employees with small balances; Form 5500 holds no individual account data.
The employer contributed $457K during the year, or $2,690 per active participant against a same-size median of $2,447; participants contributed $411K. Benefits paid out totalled $2.2M.
The filing reports no service provider compensation on Schedule C. That is common where fees are paid by the employer or taken from investment returns, neither of which appears there. Administrative expenses charged to the plan were $36K.
The independent accountant's opinion on the financial statements was unmodified (unqualified), from an audit whose scope was limited under ERISA section 103(a)(3)(C) to exclude investment information certified by a bank or insurer.
Compared with similar plans
| Measure | This plan | Same size | Same industry | All US DC plans |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net assets per participant | $36,352 | $60,185 | $42,336 | $53,102 |
| Employer contributions per active participant | $2,690 | $2,447 | $1,701 | $2,175 |
| Schedule C compensation per participant | — | $194 | $112 | $123 |
| Schedule C compensation, share of net assets | — | 0.32% | 0.32% | 0.26% |
| Administrative expenses per participant | $156 | $176 | $116 | $116 |
Peer columns are medians for plan year 2024 across defined contribution plans with 100 or more participants: 100 to 249 participants (21,996 plans), agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (647) and all US plans (63,460). Fee medians cover plans that report an amount.
Trend by plan year
| Plan year | Participants | Net assets | Per participant | Employer contributions | Participant contributions | Schedule C compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 229 | $8.3M | $36,354 | $457K | $411K | $0 |
| 2023 | 218 | $8.7M | $39,963 | $421K | $404K | $0 |
Years in which the plan filed the full Form 5500 with 100 or more participants, from 2009. Plan year is the year in which the plan year began.
Statement for the year
- Net assets, beginning of year$8,711,783
- Employer contributions$457,252
- Participant contributions$411,393
- Rollovers and other contributions—
- Total contributions$868,645
- Total income, including investment results$1,825,240
- Benefits paid$2,176,847
- Administrative expenses$35,649
- Total expenses$2,212,496
- Net income−$387,256
- Net transfers$0
- Net assets, end of year$8,324,527
Participants
- Active participants170
- Retired or separated, receiving benefits9
- Retired or separated, entitled to future benefits48
- Participants with account balances215
- Total participants, end of year229
Fees and service providers
No service provider organisations are listed on Schedule C for this plan year.
Schedule C, Part I line 2: providers that received $5,000 or more, with the form's own service codes. Individuals named on Schedule C (plan employees, individual trustees) are never shown and their compensation is excluded. Eligible indirect compensation disclosed by formula carries no dollar amount. See how to read Schedule C fees.
Administrative expenses on Schedule H
- Recordkeeping fees$33,937
- Other administrative expenses$1,712
- Total administrative expenses$35,649
Investment structure
Assets at year end by Schedule H category. The form shows the kind of vehicle holding the money, not the funds on the menu.
- Registered investment companies (mutual funds)$7.4M · 88.8%
- Corporate debt instruments$468K · 5.6%
- U.S. Government securities$306K · 3.7%
- Participant loans$79K · 0.9%
- Receivables$39K · 0.5%
- Common/collective trusts$37K · 0.4%
- Cash (interest and non-interest bearing)$207 · 0.0%
Audit and compliance answers, as filed
- Accountant's opinionUnmodified (unqualified)
- Audit scope limited under ERISA section 103(a)(3)(C)Yes
- Accounting firmWidmer Roel PC
- Participant contributions reported as transmitted lateYes, $321,366
- Covered by a fidelity bondYes, $500,000
- Blackout period during the yearNo
These are the plan administrator's own answers on Schedule H, Part IV. A reported late transmittal is the filer's disclosure of a timing lapse, usually corrected through the Department of Labor's voluntary program; the amount is the total involved, not a loss.
Plan characteristics
3DPre-approved pension plan2EProfit-sharing plan2FERISA section 404(c) plan2GTotal participant-directed account plan2JCode section 401(k) feature2KCode section 401(m) arrangement2TTotal or partial participant-directed account plan with a default investment account
Codes entered on Form 5500 line 8a, with the labels from the official instructions. Business code 115110: Support Activities for Crop Production (including cotton ginning, soil preparation, planting, & cultivating).
Similar plans in Minnesota
| Plan | Sponsor | Participants | Net assets | Per participant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Meadowland Farmers Coop 401(k) Plan | Meadowland Farmers Coop | 237 | $20.1M | $84,984 |
| Big Gain, Inc. 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan | Big Gain, Inc. | 229 | $27.0M | $118,057 |
| Minnesota Valley Testing Laboratories, Inc. 401(k) Employee Savings & Retirement Plan | Minnesota Valley Testing Laboratories, Inc. | 241 | $25.7M | $106,517 |
| Centra Sota Cooperative 401(k) Plan | Centra Sota Cooperative | 226 | $20.6M | $91,179 |
| The Restated Thrift/profit Sharing Plan for Cooperatives | New Vision Co-Op | 242 | $16.2M | $67,031 |
| Hord Farms West LLP 401(k) Retirement Plan | Hord Farms West LLP | 215 | $6.9M | $32,305 |
Defined contribution plans in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting closest in size.
Questions and answers
How big is Co-Op 401(k) Plan?
229 participants at the end of the plan year ending 31 Dec 2024, of whom 170 were active employees, with net assets of $8,324,527. Among defined contribution plans that places it in the 100 to 249 participants band, which held 21,996 plans in plan year 2024.
What does Lakes Area Cooperative contribute per participant?
The filing reports $457,252 in employer contributions for the year, which is $2,690 per active participant; the median for plans of the same type and size was $2,447 in plan year 2024. Form 5500 reports the total only. It does not state the match formula, and the per-participant figure is an average, not any one person's contribution.
What fees does the plan pay and how do they compare?
Schedule C reports no provider compensation for the year. Administrative expenses on Schedule H were $35,649. Investment costs deducted inside mutual funds and other pooled vehicles are not itemised on Form 5500, so these figures are a floor rather than a full cost.
Who runs the plan?
The sponsor is Lakes Area Cooperative. The financial statements were audited by Widmer Roel PC. Form 5500 also names the plan administrator's signer and other individuals; this site publishes organisations only.
Was the audit opinion unqualified?
The filing reports an unmodified (unqualified) opinion from a limited-scope audit, in which the accountant did not audit investment information certified by a bank or insurance company. Unmodified (formerly "unqualified") is the standard clean opinion.
How current is this, and does it show my balance?
This is the Form 5500 for the plan year 1 Jan 2024 to 31 Dec 2024, received by the Department of Labor on 9 Oct 2025. Filings are due seven months after the plan year ends, or nine and a half with an extension, so the public record always runs a year or more behind. It contains plan-level totals only: no individual balances, contributions or names of participants exist in the data.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Form 5500 research files (Form 5500, Schedule H, Schedule C) for plan years 2009 to 2025, public domain, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. This page shows the latest filing on record for EIN 41-0474270, plan 001, received 9 Oct 2025; an amended filing replaces it at the next build. Medians and percentiles are computed by this site; see the methodology. Report an error through corrections.