Cooperative Ventures has announced an investment in OpenTug, an AI-native logistics technology company specializing in inland and coastal marine transportation. Cooperative Ventures, a joint venture between CHS Inc. and GROWMARK, focuses on investing in agtech startups and developing mutually beneficial commercial relationships between startups and partners. In addition to Cooperative Ventures investment in OpenTug, CHS is working to implement the barge management system to build additional efficiency in the company’s supply chain.
OpenTug BargeOS optimizes marine logistics by streamlining commercial planning, voyage management, invoice reconciliation and powerful reporting in one unified platform. This technology enables shippers and carriers to reduce idle barge days, improve ETA prediction accuracy and minimize demurrage charges. By combining integrated barge GPS monitoring with BargeOS Autopilot's automated ingestion of traffic reports and operational emails, users gain a real-time view of barge movements and voyage activity.
With better visibility and coordination, partners using OpenTug’s digital tools can move more cargo with fewer barges. This added transparency also helps cooperatives respond more quickly to disruptions, ensuring continuity in the movement of agricultural goods.