The book before you is published on the occasion of the centenary of the Agricultural Cooperative "Vranjevo." The cooperative was founded at a time when many other cooperatives were established with a common goal: to improve the economic status of villages and farmers, enhance both crop and livestock production, and facilitate trade while improving the market placement of agricultural products. It was recognized that fragmented land holdings and individual market approaches did not contribute to the well-being of rural life. In the era of developed capitalism and the consolidation of industrial production, accompanied by the concentration of power and capital in the hands of a minority, the majority was forced to find a proper response to such circumstances. The challenge was to devise a self-organizing mechanism that would enable prosperity and a more comfortable life for those who either lacked capital altogether or did not have it in sufficient measure. Cooperatives were and remain one of the responses of independent agricultural producers to the demands of the market.
Vranjevo, or Arača, subsequently Vološinovo, are historical names of settlements that today constitute part of the inhabited place Novi Bečej. The Agricultural Cooperative, initially established as the Serbian Peasants' Cooperative in Arača, changed its name over the past century, but its essence has always remained the same: to assist farmers in uniting with a common interest and goal, making it easier to contend with the market competition they faced from the moment they began their independent agricultural production. Anyone interested in the history of the Agricultural Cooperative "Vranjevo" will find on the following pages basic information about its establishment, founders, functioning before the war, between the wars, in the post-war period, and up to the present day.
It is important to note immediately that the cooperative and cooperative practices in this region shared the fate of other economic sectors, undergoing various stages and changes based on the agrarian policies pursued by different states with distinct political structures, affecting the efficiency, appearance, and organization of the cooperatives themselves.
On festive occasions such as this, it is fitting to remember the predecessors, pay homage to the most deserving, and certainly reflect on the oldest documents that bear witness to the names of those who envisioned the farthest and the best. From their efforts and their desire to move forward, this institution emerged, proudly joining the ranks of those who have survived the first hundred years.
To all the cooperators who are part of this Cooperative, those who have been and those who will become, we wish a long, successful, and fruitful work, and we hope they proudly celebrate this significant jubilee.
Comments