In 1985, a total of 17 regional cooperatives marketed livestock. These cooperatives were created to provide greater competition, bargaining power, and market access for producers. Growth in direct marketing, bypassing the services of cooperatives, has occurred because the number of buyers has decreased and producers want to improve marketing efficiency or lower explicit costs. Less emphasis on providing convenient markets, more competitive service charges, supplementing buy-sell operations with advisory services to help members manage risk, and increasing coordination are options that might enable cooperatives to continue to meet their original Objectives.