Tim Adlington, president and owner of Middlesex Mushrooms Limited (MML), had led the formation of a co-operative of mushroom growers with the purpose of increasing the members’ negotiation power and bypassing the intermediaries to sell directly to retailers. The decision to form this co-operative had not been finalized and there were many issues to consider. In the meantime, he and Ted Kuipers were finalizing an agreement to supply mushrooms to a major Canadian supermarket chain. In addition, Adlington and Kuipers were considering the possibility of merging their companies. Adlington sits in his office knowing he has to weigh the advantages and risks of forming this co-operative as well as those of the merger.
