It was operated as a cooperative to benefit the poor during the Great Depression; during World War II, it "was largely as an aid to the general food conservation program and the war effort rather than as an economic aid to the communities served".
It was operated as a cooperative to benefit the poor during the Great Depression, along with three other WPA plants at Kent, Wapato, and Wenatchee. During World War II, it "was largely as an aid to the general food conservation program and the war effort rather than as an economic aid to the communities served".