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SW KS, near Dodge City | He might be delivering everything to the ethanol plant, so maybe that doesn't actually play into it. However, he may be short-bought on unit trains to ship other commodities and got caught w/ his pants down when the prices for those went through the roof. Right now it's right around $0.40/bu to get a unit train in.
I completely understand your gripe w/ the pricing. I'd say it's BS... but look at it from his side. His job and his family's livelihood depend on the COOP doing well. Not on your individual farm doing well. If he is buying grain at that price and not losing it to other competitors, he has a competitive advantage that he is capitalizing on. You can show your displeasure by hauling to another coop. I GUARANTEE you if enough people do this, the bid will become much more competitive very quickly.
Another thing to consider are patronage dividends. Does the coop pay enough patronage to offset the $$$ lost on the actual grain sales? The other coops may not be paying anything and your's might be paying well.
Overall, if I were in your position I would voice my issues to the board members. They are your representative on the governance of the coop, and if enough of them have the same issues the problem should be solved. Otherwise, they might be able to provide you with an explanation of why it's priced that way, other than the "well that's just the way it is." If I got that I'd just wash my hands of them, fire up the truck and take it down the road. | |
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Crooked Co-op managers............How do you give them an incentive......
