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southern MN | Vertical integration of the grain market, combined with the already integrated meat market.
Just the early steps, it sounds good to consumers. For now....... Sounds good to farmers, it's a 'new market' and they are upgrading old poor facilities, what could go wrong.....
The coops have treated grain growers kinda poorly for decades now. Their focus has been on merging, and closing small poor elevators, and building feed mill business and convenience store operations.
Grain is just the bulk commodity they DP and try to glean a few tenths off of, but they don't work -for- the grain growers.
One thing the coop elevators do for grain growers is help deal with the time crunch in fall; the local workers bend over backwards to make so-so facilities handle ever more grain for longer hours. Most private buyers are more of a 8-4, accept when we have room, type of buyer.....
But there doesn't seem to be much push to elevate grain values by the coops any more. Feed customers get the dividends for feed; grain growers get a shrug and oh well hope grain prices come up for you next year.
Perhaps one reason the big big vertical integrators can hone in on the grain business? Grain growers don't find the value any more in the coop system, looking for something better?
In the long run this vertical integration will squash independent grain farming, but in the short term it offers a positive alternative.
So,etching for a coop to think about anyhow.
A small point in a very large topic, I'm not trying to be overly dramatic. Farming has and will continue to change and this is part of it.
Paul | |
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Smithfield cuts out the "middleman"
