Connection Winter 2015 | Page 8

GRAIN MARKETS Another year in the books Container loading offers new opportunities H By Lindsey Bowers arvest 2015 is in the books. We received 2.6 million bushels of corn, nearly 2 million bushels of grain sorghum and 100,000 bushels of soybeans. The crops this year overall were not nearly as good as we expected. This year will be the first year that we have operated below storage capacity since 2011. By the end of the year, we should only have corn in house. The grain markets have been dismal to say the least. Since harvest time frame December 2015 Corn Futures attempted to rally to $4.00, but have traded as low as $3.57. Corn basis continues to gradually strengthen, but with the short crop we expect it to be easily above last year’s levels in time. Milo basis at the port has quickly diminished with the Chinese demand. Please review the latest USDA Crop Production Report on the opposite page. The marketing pools are 100 percent covered with futures and upside to $4.90 with calls. The grain sorghum marketing pool is 100 percent contracted on basis and a portion of corn is contracted on basis as well. By the time you read this, you should have received a progress payment for grain sorghum that represents the majority of the equity. Trucks and shipping containers are being loaded with corn and soybeans out of the Danevang elevator location. To date, United Ag has loaded 50 shipping containers with soybeans for export overseas and expects to load out the remaining soybeans pending the results of a federal grading. Overall, the container loading was a great learning experience and will allow opportunities to capture new markets for various grains. The addition of a new insect control, PBO8, seems to have increased the overall effectiveness of our insect prevention thus far, which should lower the cost of fumigation in the spring. Since the completion of cotton harvest, employees have been rotated around to begin offseason tasks such as cleaning out air ducts for more efficient aeration, daily inspections and maintenance on equipment throughout each facility, and improvements to increase productivity wherever needed. As of Monday, November 9, the corn bagging plant is scheduled to be operational by the end of the month at the latest. The building is complete and construction of the overhead bulk corn bin and elevator leg will be finished by November 12. From there, the final remaining items will be setting the bagging line equipment, finishing the insulation on the walls and roof, electrical installation and training our employees on operating the equipment. Be on the lookout for the new United Ag High Caliber Corn bags that will be in stores throughout the area very soon! United Ag has loaded 50 shipping containers with soybeans for export overseas and expects to load out the remaining soybeans pending the results of a federal grading. 8