The board of directors at Southern AgCredit, a rural lending cooperative, returned $11.7 million in cash patronage to its customer-owners in March.

The customer-owned cooperative shares its surplus earnings with borrowers once capital requirements for future lending are met. The patronage dividend returned to customers has effectively reduced the interest rate paid by each borrower.

“Patronage is a vital benefit of Southern AgCredit’s cooperative structure and reflects our commitment to sharing the success of our association with the customer-owners we serve,” said Southern AgCredit CEO Ken Hobart.