Fieldviews
SUMMER 2016 EDITION
Bringing You Value
in the Field
Page 8
UFC to Sell Natural
Gas
Page 10
Record Corn
Supplies
UFC Field Sales
Agronomist
Andy Olson (left)
compares root
systems with
producer Jim
Oelfke in Jim’s
alfalfa field.
Page 13
Bringing the
Community in Our Doors
Page 20
P E O P L E
•
P R I D E
•
P U R P O S E
Working the Plan by Working Together
T
hanks to our farmer-owners for your outstanding
efforts and cooperation as we worked together to
give the 2016 crop a great start. All that planning,
preparing and communication enabled us to keep
pace with your constantly growing efficiency at
putting seed in the ground.
The new equipment in Winthrop surpassed expectations
and allowed our staff to offer more support than ever.
Likewise, our new Hamburg facilities allowed our staff to
better assist farmers on the east side. And we were thrilled
to have members and employees of the Brownton Co-op Ag
Center join the UFC team, further strengthening our spring
planting services.
The thing that makes our springtime collaboration work is
people. It starts in the board room with developing a plan to
stay ahead of your needs. That plan is implemented by the
outstanding UFC employee team and backed by you, our valued customers.
Spring is just one example of Working the Plan by
Working Together—a subject you will read more about in this
edition of Fieldviews. Examples include the ongoing growth
of our Feed Department, the addition of natural gas to our
Energy Department and the rapidly expanding list of services
and products offered by our UFC Farm Supply Department.
We will highlight the importance of people in all areas of
our business as we focus on another of UFC’s strategic initiatives: the recruiting, developing and retaining of the right
talent. I hope you enjoy reading some of the personal stories
in this magazine.
In closing, I want to personally invite all of you to our
Customer Appreciation Events on Aug. 22 and 23 at
Winthrop and Hamburg, as we celebrate our 101st year of
Working the Plan by Working Together. ●
Proud of our people,
Jeff Nielsen
General Manager/CEO
AgQuest Insurance Agency is an equal opportunity provider.
the POWER to FARM TEAM
Vince Sloot, Finance/Crop Ins.
cell 507-995-9029
[email protected]
Together... We Find The Way!
“Vince and Dawn at the Winthrop office
are great to work with and help keep my
farming operation running smoothly at all
times of the year. Keep up the great service!!!”
Ryan
Dawn Wickenhauser, Admin Finance/Crop Ins. Tim Lewis, Property & Casualty Ins.
ph 507-647-6606 x6749
cell 612-756-2903
[email protected]
[email protected]
“It is a pleasure working with our
representative at AgQuest, Vince Sloot.
We appreciate the personal attributions
he brings to our family farm business.
He is very knowledgeable about the crop
insurance, market trends, land values
and financial risks. Vince has become an
asset to our farming success.”
Peter
UFC DIRECTORY
AgQuest Finance—507-647-6606 Ext. 6749
Bird Island Elevator—320-365-4012
Brownton Ag Service Center—320-328-5211
Brownton Shuttle—320-328-4002
Cologne Feed Mill—952-466-5518
Corporate Office—507-647-6600
Gaylord Ag Service Center—507-237-4203
Gaylord C-Store—507-237-2281
Gibbon C-Store—507-834-6615
Grain Marketing—507-647-6601
Green Isle C-Store—507-326-5866
Hamburg Ag Service Center—952-467-3111
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Hector Ag Service Center—320-848-2296
The Reason We Do What We Do. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 4
Klossner Elevator—507-359-4519
Meet Our Interns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 6
Klossner Livestock Service Center—507-359-2970
Bringing You Value in the Field. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8
Klossner Station—507-359-4503
Lafayette Ag Service Center—507-228-8224
Together We Are Stronger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 9
Lafayette C-Store—507-228-8364
UFC to Sell Natural Gas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 10
Lafayette Elevator—507-228-8221
Operating Excellence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11
Lafayette Seed Shed—507-228-8669
Different Year, Same Principles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12
LeSueur—507-665-6421
Record Corn Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13
New Auburn C-Store—320-864-2811
Behind the Scene at UFC’s Feed Department. . . . . . Page 15
New Germany C-Store—952-353-2601
What Can Precision Ag Do This Summer?. . . . . . . . . Page 17
Norseland Ag Service Center—507-246-5300
Secure Payment Program for LP or Heating Fuel. . . Page 18
UFC Farm Supply-Burnsville—952-890-5296
Market Thoughts by Marc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 19
UFC Farm Supply-Maple Plain—763-479-2123
Bringing the Community in Our Doors . . . . . . . . . . . Page 20
UFC Farm Supply-Waconia—952-442-2126
Tomorrow’s Solutions Are Here Today.. . . . . . . . . . . Page 21
Waconia Energy Office—952-442-2126
Winthrop C-Store—507-647-5931
Service Dryers and Legs Before Harvest. . . . . . . . . . Page 23
Winthrop Chemical Warehouse—507-647-6615
Customer Appreciation Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 24
Winthrop Elevator—507-647-5311
Winthrop Energy Office—507-647-6602
©2016 United Farmers Cooperative. All Rights Reserved. Published in partnership with VistaComm
®
(www.VistaComm.com).
3
The Reason We Do What We Do
By Jeff Nielsen, General Manager/CEO
Focusing on Strategic Initiative #3
I
n the last issue of Fieldviews, I began to reveal how
the UFC Board of Directors and leadership team make
decisions. I said we base everything we do on a set of
strategic initiatives. These initiatives focus on relentless
intentionality and govern every decision we make.
I introduced these initiatives at our 100th year kickoff in
January 2015 by handing a copy to all who attended. Over
several issues of Fieldviews, I intend to bring each initiative
to life for you, the reader.
In this article, I will discuss Strategic Initiative #3: UFC will
focus on developing, retaining and recruiting the right talent.
The “right talent” is our exceptional people.
The reason that developing, retaining and recruiting
the right talent is a strategic initiative is simple. The best
facilities, equipment and plans cannot be successful without
the human factor. We must be intentional about recruiting,
training and retaining the best talent to keep up with the
ever-changing needs of our valued customers.
UFC intensified its commitment to developing people 12
years ago when we started our UFC Scholarship Program.
We did so after recognizing the need to invest in the future
of local students. Since then, we’ve ramped up and become
more intentional about our UFC Internship Program, which
you will learn more about in this issue.
UFC has also invested in facilities like the Berdan Event
Center right here in Winthrop. This center not only provides a
great spot for training and development of UFC employees, but
it is also a gathering place for many other community activities.
PEOPLE: Our Most Valuable Asset
By Jenny Krohn, Training/Development Manager
B
eyond the considerable
physical and financial assets
of this company you own,
UFC’s people offer the greatest potential for fulfilling our
mission: To supply our customers with
technology, products and services in a
manner that is extraordinary enough to
add value to their lives.
Our people make UFC work. As a
company, we have adopted a tagline
that reads: People • Pride • Purpose. It
is no accident that our tagline begins
with people.
My role at UFC is to focus on developing, retaining and recruiting the
people who serve you, our valued customers. Here is how we go about doing
that.
Recruiting
UFC’s Internship Program has attracted bright new talent to our company.
In the last three years, we’ve hired 10
people who have interned with us and
returned as full-time employees. We
find those interns at a number of local
ag-focused colleges and universities
such as Ridgewater College (Willmar);
South Central College (Mankato); South
Dakota State University (Brookings); the
University of Minnesota (St. Paul campus), the University of Wisconsin-River
Falls, among others.
4
www.UFCmn.com
The goal of our internship program
is to provide students with hands-on
experience while giving UFC an opportunity to develop potential employees.
We also discover new talent through
an employee referral program that has
proven very successful. Our employees
are the best advocates for the people
they want to work side-by-side with.
Of course, we post jobs like other
companies, but the internship program
and the employee referral program set
us apart.
Retaining
Keeping excellent employees is an
important part of Strategic Initiative #3.
Loyal, long-time employees have built
valuable customer relationships, retain
indispensable knowledge gained over
years of service and can help mentor
new talent.
UFC’s current employee base has
an average of 10 years of service. The
reason we’ve retained employees for
this long is that we give people with a
passion for agriculture the opportunity
to grow.
As Jeff mentioned, we built facilities
like the Berdan Event Center because
of our desire to offer employees additional training and the chance to move
up within the company. We also offer
a top-notch employee benefit package
that keeps many of
them at UFC.
Another reason our people stay with
UFC is because of the relationships
they’ve built with their co-workers and
the customers of UFC. We’re intentional
about creating opportunities for those
relationships to flourish.
Developing
An important part of retaining good
employees is the opportunities we offer
them to receive additional education
(technical or leadership) and to be mentored (formally or informally) by people
with knowledge and experience.
To be happy in our jobs, we all
need the opportunity to grow. At UFC,
we believe in growing local talent.
We place an emphasis on hiring and
advancing from within. This emphasis
is aimed at continuing beneficial relationships that have already been built.
It provides valuable jobs for people in
communities where UFC employees are living and working alongside our
customers.
Developing our current employee
base and hiring/advancing from within
saves money in the long run by conserving relationships and experiences
already attained. This part of Strategic
Initiative #3 allows us to serve you most
efficiently and cost effectively. ●
UFC STRATEGIC INITIATIVES
Focusing on “Relentless Intentionality”
PURPOSE: What drives our business? What must we focus
on? What are we about? These initiatives will explain.
Our intentional focus on Strategic Initiative #3 is already
paying dividends. We now have many examples of talented people who have had the opportunity to grow and
reach their career goals without having to leave the families and communities important to them. This is an incredible benefit that will address one of UFC’s other strategic
initiatives—being a good corporate citizen and a valued,
participating member in the communities we serve. We’ll
discuss that in a future issue of Fieldviews.
To tell the story better, let’s hear from UFC’s Training/
Development Manager, Jenny Krohn, who has been
involved in many aspects of Strategic Initiative #3. Jenny
will share some real-life stories with positive outcomes. ●
1. UFC’s future will be first and foremost focused on
organic growth.
2. UFC will take advantage of strategic opportunities.
3.UFC will focus on developing, retaining and
recruiting the right talent to accomplish the
strategy above.
4. UFC will be a good corporate citizen and a valued,
participating member in the communities we serve.
5. UFC will ALWAYS remember its mission: To supply our
customers with technology, products and services in a
manner that is extraordinary enough to add value to
their lives.
RECRUITMENT
ALEX PORTNER – Agronomy Intern
“I chose UFC’s Internship Program because they offer great opportunities to gain more experience in the agronomy industry.”
BEN JOHNSON – Agronomy Intern
“The reason I chose UFC for my internship is because of the great
opportunities I will receive through crop scouting, getting connected
to growers, learning how the co-op system operates and receiving
knowledge for my future career in agriculture.”
DEVELOPMENT
RYAN PONWITH – Agronomy Sales Manager
“UFC was instrumental in my personal success as they willingly provided me with the tools, leadership and the opportunity to grow, not
only professionally but personally as well. The atmosphere at UFC is
one that is conducive to creating personal development that leads to
the drive to be better at what you do every day.”
LEON WENNINGER – Feed Operations Manager
“During my 20 years at UFC, this company and management have
provided me with a variety of options to acquire the skills for advancement in my position. Advancement is there if you want it. I really enjoy
working with all aspects of feed and everyone associated within UFC.
If the customer is happy, then we did our job from start to finish.”
RETENTION
DARRELL ABRAHAMSON – Grain Originator (40 years with UFC)
“I enjoy talking with patrons and listening to their thoughts, ideas
and problems. I enjoy being able to understand their needs and give
them different options. I have also stayed with UFC because I work
with a great group of employees.”
TIM HENDRYCKS – Parts Manager (45 years with UFC)
“I’ve stayed with UFC for 45 years because of the customers. When
they walk away with a smile, I know we’ve made a difference and
that’s what keeps me going.”
5
Meet Our 2016 Interns
Jacob Helget is from New Ulm
and attends South Dakota State
University. He is a junior majoring in Agronomy. In his spare
time, he enjoys watching football and biking.
Erin McDurmont is from
Winthrop and attends Southwest
Minnesota State University.
She is a sophomore majoring in Agronomy/Agricultural
Solutions. She is involved with
Ag Club and, in her spare time,
enjoys coaching softball, fishing
and traveling.
Ben Johnson is from St. Peter
and attends the University
of Wisconsin-River Falls. He
is a sophomore majoring in
Agricultural Studies. In his spare
time, he enjoys farming, fishing,
hunting and spending time at
the lake.
Nicholas Malecek is from
Morgan and attends Southwest
Minnesota State University.
He is a freshman majoring in
Ag Business. In school, he is
involved with Ag Club and
Enactus. In his spare time, he
enjoys hunting, feeding cows
and traveling.
Daniel Hayes is from Lafayette
and attends the University of
Minnesota-St. Paul. He is a
freshman majoring in Agriculture
Communications and Marketing.
In his spare time, he enjoys
snowmobiling, hunting, having
4-H livestock and being involved
in student organizations.
Cody Gilliland is from Sleepy
Eye and attends South Dakota
State University. He is a freshman majoring in Agronomy. He
enjoys football, hockey, hunting
and fishing.
Alex Portner is from New
Ulm and attends South Central
College. He is a freshman majoring in Agribusiness Service and
Management. In his spare time,
Alex enjoys hunting, being outdoors and spending time with
friends and family.
Gavin Held is from Waconia
and attends South Dakota State
University. He is a sophomore
majoring in Ag Systems Tech.
He is involved with AST Club
and FarmHouse Fraternity in
school. Gavin enjoys hunting,
fishing and riding dirt bikes in
his spare time.
Matt Ditsch is from Cologne
and attends the University of
Minnesota. He is a junior majoring in Agriculture Feed Business
Management. In his spare time,
he enjoys fishing and working on
the family farm.
Darian Schulte is from
Gaylord and attends South
Central College. He is a sophomore majoring in Chemical
Application/Service and
Management. He enjoys being
outdoors in his spare time.
NOTICE
We will start recruiting for our 2017 Internship Program this fall. If you or someone you know is interested, please email Jenny Krohn,
UFC Training/Development Manager, at [email protected], call 507-647-6600 ext. 6703, or visit our website: www.UFCmn.com.
6
www.UFCmn.com
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7
Bringing You Value in the Field
By Ryan Ponwith, Agronomy Sales Manager
I
am excited to serve the patrons
of UFC in my new role as
Agronomy Sales Manager. I will
be working closely with the UFC
Field Sales Agronomists to provide focus and organization of
agronomy products and services. Our
ultimate goal is to provide more value
to you, our customers, by bringing
expert knowledge and agronomic
practices to your fields and farms. This
will be accomplished through in depth
agronomic training in the areas of fertility, crop health, seed placement and
the latest technology, such as United
Insight.
You may be seeing some new faces
in your fields this summer, our interns. I
have a lot of enthusiasm for our internship program because that is how I
got my start with UFC. My internship
gave me hands-on experience to learn
the basic foundation of agronomy and
allowed me to work with customers
professionally to find solutions that
work for their operation. The focus for
our 2016 class of interns is agronomy.
Each intern will develop a report that
8
www.UFCmn.com
uniquely explains the detail of their
summer project through mapping,
crop scouting, tissue sampling
and using the R7® Tool. UFC looks
forward to helping these young individuals develop their agronomy skills and
professional experiences.
Also coming up this summer are
UFC Plot Events. Be watching your mail
for invitations to attend these hands-on
learning sessions. We will be covering
topics such as corn and soybean varieties, high management vs. average management, fertility and ag technology.
We hope to see you there.
I’ll close by reporting that your
company is performing remarkably
well for its patrons. This spring, we
were able to provide timely and professional service to our agronomy
customers, and I am excited to extend
that great service into the summer. We
take great pride in how our Field Sales
Agronomists work together with our
top-notch Operations team to deliver
products and services in a manner that
is extraordinary enough to add value
to your operation. ●
Meet Ryan
Ponwith, UFC
Agronomy Sales
Manager
Ryan Ponwith grew up on
a family farm near Cleveland,
Minnesota. Ryan is no stranger
to UFC, he began his journey as
an intern in 2010 and 2011. After
graduating from the University
of Wisconsin-River Falls with a
bachelor’s degree in Agricultural
Business, Ryan was hired full
time in agronomy sales. Shortly
after, Ryan held the position of
Master Field Sales Agronomist
for three and a half years before
starting his current position this
past March as Agronomy Sales
Manager. Ryan and his wife, Emily,
live in Cleveland, Minnesota, with
their nine-month-old daughter,
Layla. Ryan enjoys spending time
with family, farming and being
outdoors.
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suite of industry-leading products such as Ascend® plant
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MAX-IN® micronutrients can help crops get
off to a strong start by monitoring ongoing
nutrient levels and correcting deficiencies
before yields are affected. Which means
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Together We Are Stronger
By Jeff Franta, UFC Board Chairman
I
still marvel at the fact that we are members of a company that has served area
agricultural producers for over 100
years. We have multiple generations of
committed, loyal members and great
employees. It’s both exciting and humbling to
see how UFC has grown and matured as a company in my
lifetime and at an accelerated pace over the last 10 years.
It’s the people, both the members and the employees, who
have accomplished this.
The talent level of this company’s management and
employees is commendable. Good employees provide
patrons with effective, efficient service, which generates
profitability that is distributed back to the members.
By the same token, this company would not be where it
is today without the trust and loyalty of its members. You
and I are stronger because we’ve banded together. Likewise,
UFC is a product of many smaller companies that have joined
together over the years. That’s the cooperative difference.
This company has a well-defined mission and plan: To
supply our customers with technology, products and services in a manner that is extraordinary enough to add value
to their lives. It’s all about service and the desire to thrive
(not just survive) as we journey together.
UFC is committed to being here long into the future and
to serving its members in the best and worst of economic
times. We continue to grow and change to meet our members’ needs.
Our company has a track record of many successful working relationships with our cooperative neighbors at the local
and regional level. As long as it fits our mission and purpose, we will continue on this path.
As always, your Board of Directors encourages your
questions and comments. Have an enjoyable summer! ●
9
UFC to Sell Natural Gas
By Darv Turbes, Vice President of Energy, and Doug Lund, Energy Operations Manager
By the fall of 2016, the UFC Energy Department will begin flowing natural gas
through a 36-mile pipeline loop that will serve up to 500 individuals, farmers,
commercial businesses and schools in western Nicollet County.
T
he loop, to be constructed
this summer by Greater
Minnesota Gas and
Transmission of Le Sueur,
will connect to the natural
gas pipeline currently in the ground
and owned by the city of Hutchinson.
The connection will be made five miles
west of Lafayette.
From that point, the pipeline loop
will travel east to serve the town
of Lafayette (about 200 users) and
south to serve the town of Courtland
(about 350 users) before angling back
northwest, through Klossner, to the
Hutchinson pipeline. By extending this
pipeline loop to the communities of
Lafayette, Courtland and Klossner, UFC
also anticipates being able to deliver
natural gas to other accounts along the
way.
We have formed a new entity within
UFC Energy to market and distribute
natural gas. The department will be
known as United Natural Gas.
We realized the unique opportunity
we have to serve rural communities
with natural gas in 2011, after arranging
to bring natural gas to our Brownton
Grain Terminal for corn drying. The
planning process for the current project
began about three years ago, and this
spring we signed agreements with the
city of Hutchinson to flow gas through
their pipeline. We will pay them a transmission fee, and we will buy gas directly from the major suppliers.
It makes sense for your local cooperative to enter the natural gas distribution business. It involves our same
customer base and gives local ownership to the distribution system that will
supply this commodity. Plus, since we
already supply propane to many of the
people we will be serving with natural
gas, we have the service personnel necessary to address their concerns.
If you are a member of UFC, whether or not you buy natural gas from us,
you can be excited that we have this
additional revenue source. The propane
supply system we have in place right
now will become stronger because a
portion of our current customers will
transition to natural gas, which will free
up propane supplies that have been
short in recent years.
With natural gas supplies becoming
more abundant all of the time, someone
Lafayette
15
Klossner
New Ulm
14
68
Courtland
Nicollet County farmer Ted Portner has graciously allowed United Natural Gas to tap the City of
Hutchinson’s pipeline and establish a Town Border Station (TBS) on his family’s property.
Pictured above is Ted (left) with Darv Turbes.
10
www.UFCmn.com
would build a rural pipeline—so why
not your local cooperative?
We are very fortunate that residents
of Lafayette, Courtland and Klossner
have joined together to make this project viable. If you are a future customer
of our natural gas services, we will
install a meter on your building that can
be electronically read. Like electricity,
you will not have to worry about running out of natural gas, and you will be
billed as you use it.
If you live along the pipeline loop,
United Natural Gas will be contacting
you about the opportunity we have to
serve you.
We plan to put pipe in the ground
mid-summer, with the goal of flowing
natural gas through that pipeline this
fall. Stay tuned! ●
Producer Jacob Oelfke (left) and
Forage/Nutrition Specialist Erica
O’Loughlin (right) listen as Dairy
Sales & Service Specialist Rich
Schug (kneeling) evaluates forage
quality and feedability.
Operating Excellence
By Greg Peton, Chief Operating Officer
We have all experienced the frustration of standing in line, waiting to check out
at the grocery, department, convenience or big box store. As we scan the front
of the store, we observe numerous checkout stations not open. The clerk behind
the only active checkout is moving at a snail’s pace. Other employees scamper
to leave the scene, or even worse, there is no other visible sign of human life.
T
he clerk ignores obvious signs of our desire to
pay and move on with our day, and we resign
ourselves to the fact that our lives are in the control of someone else. When we finally depart the
store, we immediately begin to think of better
ways to purchase the products and services we need and
want.
Hopefully, this does not describe anything you have ever
encountered at UFC. Operational excellence is an objective
all UFC employees are tasked to focus on. We want to ensure
that you, our customers, are provided with products, services
and technology in a manner that is extraordinary enough to
add value to your lives!
Every day, I observe UFC employees performing at high
levels of engagement to ensure your needs are met, so that
you do not leave our facilities looking for a better option.
That may involve answering your questions about planter
monitors at 4 o’clock in the morning, or ensuring your fertilizer application is no more than 18 hours out. It could involve
having the right parts on hand, anticipating your feed or fuel
delivery needs, or working diligently to market your grain. In
whatever we do for you, we strive for operating excellence.
The culture of getting the job done is so
imbedded in UFC that companies working
for us follow our lead. A perfect example
involves UFC’s construction of the Brownton
agronomy complex, which is currently underway.
The first segment of construction was very complicated.
Still, UFC placed a high priority on completing the project on
time—to allow our Grain Department to load out unit trains.
Because of weather and other unforeseen delays, the project started behind schedule. But the contractor understood
UFC’s expectations and raised the bar of operational excellence. As a result, they completed the first phase ahead of
schedule.
Operating excellence is a journey. Each and every step
along the way will result in improved efficiencies. Working
hard is part of the equation towards achieving this lofty
objective. The adoption of improved efficiencies and streamlining processes, along with hard work, will lead UFC even
further down our desired path. The journey has begun. ●
11
Different Year, Same Principles
By Vince Sloot, AgQuest Business Relationships Manager/Crop Insurance Specialist
Let’s cut to the chase. The current ag economic cycle is not as easy or
as fun as a couple of years ago. Survival is a must; but to thrive, you
must reduce risks. You’ve heard it said that KNOWLEDGE IS POWER,
and I believe that is true. The more you know, the more you are able
to make sound decisions, regardless of the situation.
W
orking with ag finance and crop insurance,
the question I hear most often is, “Should
I sell or hold?” The answer to this question
requires knowledge of your break-even
costs.
The tools and the expertise available to you through UFC
and AgQuest Financial can help you arrive at these numbers.
Knowing your breakevens will help you make sound decisions and better ensure positive margins.
Sitting down to make these calculations is, however, a
chore. As farmers, we like to work with our hands, producing
things “IN” our business. Making an appointment to meet with
someone—even a trusted advisor—to work “ON” our business
is not as easy. But doing so will pay valuable dividends.
A pre-harvest checklist
It is July, but harvest is looming. Timely, well-thought-out
preparation beats the best executed “rescue plan” anytime!
Here are a few time-sensitive items:
• Unsure whether you will chop your corn or harvest the
grain? Report your intentions now to your crop insurance
agent. It can always be withdrawn later.
12
www.UFCmn.com
• Planning to commingle 2016 bushels with old crop? Your
bins need to be measured prior to harvest.
• Keeping accurate records during harvest is very important—
whether the potential of a claim exists or you just needed
them for annual reporting and financial analysis.
• Keep track of production by section, and/or by field.
Methods include: printable combine records; sale
receipts/settlement sheets; appraisals performed by an
adjuster; bins marked by field or section; certified scale
weights; tally of wagons, trucks, hoppers or dryer batches;
and feed records.
Here’s one final piece of advice: Clearly postmark the
premium payment for your crop insurance one week before
the absolute deadline: Sept. 30, 2016. If the post office does
not process it by this date, there are no exceptions and
interest will accrue.
For more information, contact UFC’s AgQuest Team: Vince
Sloot at 507-995-9029, Tim Lewis at 612-756-2903 or Dawn
Wickenhauser at 507-657-6606 ext. 6749. You may email us at
[email protected]; [email protected] or dwickenhauser@
agquest.net. Or visit us at www.agquest.net. ●
Record Corn Supplies
By Nathan Nordstrom, Director of Grain Merchandising
W
ith spring and early summer field work wrapping
up, it’s a good time to
revisit your grain marketing strategy. The March
31 planting intentions
report and some issues in South America have allowed
the grain markets to experience a transitional shift that
should create better pricing opportunities going forward. Corn could very easily remain oversupplied if the
Midwest experiences good summer weather, so you
shouldn’t abandon plans to forward market some of
your new crop. However, using a strategy to keep some
upside open may pay off this year. The funds will react
quickly to any reduction in soybean yields, which would
likely spill over into other grains.
Whatever the weather scenario plays out to be, the
UFC grain department has a variety of marketing tools to
help you lock in good prices during the next few crucial
months. Talk to your grain originator to keep up to date
on crop condition reports, developing market trends and
contracts tailored to your market view. ●
13
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14 www.UFCmn.com
740 Bowman
Street • Stewart, MN 55385
800.422.3649 • www.formafeed.com
DSI staff left to right: Patti
Stier, Amanda Price and
Steve Armbrust.
Behind the Scene at UFC’s Feed Department
By Steve LeBrun, Vice President of Feed
E
very UFC business unit has many working parts
in place to serve our patrons’ needs. In the Feed
Department, some of these working parts are
obvious—like our feed mills and our feed delivery
trucks traveling throughout our market area. These
working parts include our sales staff consulting and
building rations for our patrons, and the production staff
making feed in our mills.
Behind the scenes, however, there are many other activities that need to happen daily to keep feed coming out the
front door. One of the most critical is procuring ingredients
at a competitive price and having them delivered on a timely
basis to our mills.
To address this, UFC’s Feed Department partnered with
another cooperative in 1997 to start a small company called
Direct Source Ingredients (DSI).
Steve Armbrust, an experienced Commodity Trader, was
hired to go out into the feed ingredient market, discover
the best prices available and relay that information back to
our company. After we use that information to make buying
decisions, DSI finalizes the purchasing and delivery with the
suppliers, on our behalf.
The true value of DSI is having people who spend all their
time in the feed ingredient market, talking to suppliers and
understanding the external factors that will affect the supply or
cost of an ingredient going forward. Just as
important, DSI provides the logistics of getting
product to our mills when we need them—which
ensures you get your feed when you need it.
This information is so critical to making
decisions that, soon after this company’s
formation, we were approached by other feed organizations
wanting to access the services of DSI. A decision was made
to provide DSI services to others for a monthly fee. An office
was established in Eagan, and as the business grew, so did
the staff. It now includes Steve and two coworkers who are all
UFC Feed Department employees.
As of today, DSI has 23 clients in Minnesota, Iowa and
Wisconsin who operate over 40 feed mills. DSI handles transactions for over 1 million tons of ingredients for these clients
and UFC combined. This volume gives us the ability to negotiate pricing and terms with many of our suppliers.
Direct Source Ingredients gives our patrons the opportunity to forward contract ingredients when it is advantageous.
These contract prices are available by contacting our staff.
When you do, we will provide all the details.
This is just another part of your Feed Department’s efforts
to honor and fulfill UFC’s mission: To supply our customers
with technology, products and services in a manner that is
extraordinary enough to add value to their lives. ●
15
WACONIA
801 S. Highway 284
Waconia, MN 55387
952-442-2126
MAPLE PLAIN
5135 Oak Street
Maple Plain, MN 55359
763-479-2123
COLOGNE
206 Mill St. E.
Cologne, MN 55322
952-466-5518
LE SUEUR
316 N. Main
LeSueur, MN 56058
507-665-6421
What Can Precision Ag Do This Summer? PLENTY
By Brett Amberg, Precision Ag Sales Manager, and Jason Ries, Precision Ag Sales Advisor
What a spring! We got off to an early start in fairly dry ground. Then we were
delayed by a couple of long rain events that made things too wet and slowed
planting progress. All this was followed by a frost. But it appears that most of
the crops made it through with minimal damage.
N
ow is the time,
as you put your
planters back in the
shed, to prepare
for 2017. Precision
Planting has
announced a couple of summer programs that may interest
you:
1) A $50 rebate per row on vDriveTM or DeltaForceTM and
a $150 rebate per row if you do both. Prices are good
through Aug. 15, 2016.
2) A $1,000 rebate on a 20/20 SeedSense® for your planter
or combine through Aug. 15, 2016. A $500 rebate on
a 20/20 SeedSense® for your planter or combine from
Aug. 16, 2016, through Feb. 28, 2017. NOTE: If you are
using Gen 1 20/20’s, this may be a good opportunity to
upgrade.
3) 1.99% - 36-month grower financing on orders over
$10,000 through Aug. 15, 2016.
Make the precision
decision and take
advantage of our
summer deals on
Delta Force and
vDrive.
Now that planting is over, start walking the fields to see
how the crop has emerged and is progressing through the
growing season. Bring in your planting data and we can analyze how your planter performed, looking at key factors like
population, singulation, spacing and down pressure. These
factors have a very strong correlation to your yield potential.
We can ground truth this information in the field by doing
stand counts and checking for emergence.
With the seed in the ground, all we can do for this crop
year is limit crop stress and use in-season management
practices to improve crop health. This includes scouting for
weeds, nutrient deficiencies, crop diseases, pests and other
issues you may have out in the field.
UFC’s United Insight program includes several tools and
technologies to help diagnose these problems. We can use
NDVI in-season imagery from either satellites or drones to
identify problematic areas in your fields as well as areas
that are progressing well. With these images, we can take
geo-referenced tissue tests and nitrate tests, as well as scout
for weeds, diseases and pests. These steps may explain why
an area is or isn’t performing well.
It is also time to start preparing for harvest. If you need
a yield monitor or want to upgrade your current yield monitor, we can help. We sell, install and service Ag Leader® and
Precision Planting® yield monitoring systems. We can handle
the data generated from these monitors, as well as processing, cleaning, storing and providing you with reports and
maps on how each field performed.
With the current rapid advancement of the agricultural
industry, it is important you are collecting this data and doing
it as accurately as possible. It will give you a better understanding how certain parts of your field are performing, which
will help you plan for next year.
At UFC, we have the precision ag team and resources
available to help you with any questions you may have about
your operation. Whether you are wondering how your planter
performed this spring or you are curious as to how your crop
is progressing, we have the assets to help. Contact the UFC
ag center nearest you and ask to speak to the precision ag
experts. ●
17
Secure Payment Program for LP or Heating Fuel
By Andrea Helget and Ruth Domeier, UFC Energy Department
T
wo years ago, UFC
Energy implemented a new way of
buying propane or
home heating fuel
called the Secure
Payment Plan. Last winter, 300
UFC energy customers used
this plan—many of them young
families or people on fixed incomes.
With Secure Payment, we take a three-year
average of the customer’s propane usage
times a fixed price per gallon and divide that
sum into 12 monthly payments. The customer may choose to mail a payment or have
UFC conveniently withdraw it from their bank
account.
Participation in this plan automatically
enrolls the customer in scheduled delivery,
which means UFC calculates the usage and fills
the tank. Scheduled delivery provides a measure of comfort, since the tank is automatically
filled—though customers on scheduled delivery are still asked to keep an eye on their tanks
in case usage changes.
At the end of 12 months, the remaining balance due or
credit is rolled into the calculations for next year’s bill.
Secure payment helps manage our customers’ monthly
financial resources, because it gives them a fixed amount
they know will come out of their account or be mailed,
instead of having to come up with a large sum at the time of
delivery.
If you want to sign up for Secure Payment, call the UFC
Energy Department at 507-647-6602 or 888-832-5734. ●
Harold Peters delivers propane for UFC at Waconia.
5
18
www.ufcmn.com
73893 00082
7
81020
MARKET THOUGHTS BY MARC
Never Saw That Coming
By Marc Peterson, Director of UFC Risk Management Department
About six months ago, the situation was that the U.S.
farmer had just harvested a good crop of corn and soybeans and, for one reason or another, had sold a historically small percentage of the crop. Prices had fallen to multiyear lows. There was plenty of on-the-farm and commercial
storage available, so the farmers just tucked the crop away
and waited for prices to go up.
The South American crop was off to a good start and
analysts were predicting that a record quantity of soybeans
and corn would be available when they harvested in May
and June.
The supply situation after the U.S. harvest was well
above the current demand estimates and the outlook was
for U.S. and world supplies to grow even larger in 2016-17.
Some analysts were predicting the U.S. soybean ending
stocks to exceed 600 million bushels.
In addition to the bearish fundamental factors, the carry
in the future market (return to storage) was historically narrow and basis levels were historically wide.
Given these market factors, it did not take long for
marketing gurus and bankers to encourage farmers to start
selling, even if it was possibly below cost
of production. Prices did continue to trade sideways to
lower through March and April.
However, in this same time frame, some problems started to develop in South America and the idea of a record
crop started to slip away. It happens every year in various parts of the U.S. that planting problems and weather
extremes start to develop in June and July.
Needless to say as I write this, the price of old- and
new-crop corn and soybeans has rallied to levels that were
only a dream six months ago.
This year has turned out to be the poster child of why
using “put option strategies” to establish price floors, rather than making cash sales, can be great marketing
alternatives.
While most of the news was “doom and gloom” for
prices, the most volatile and seasonally “too-hot, too-cold,
too-wet, too-dry” sales were still months away. No one
knows if any of these conditions will develop, but this was
why using some kind of “do-over” option strategy has
turned out to be a much better marketing strategy than a
sale last fall or winter.
The scenarios of using options are much too variable to
cover in this article. Just remember that it’s never too late
to learn how to use options in your marketing program.
The UFC Grain Department staff is always available to
help in developing your marketing plan. Don’t hesitate to
come in and discuss your individual situation.
If we don’t learn from the past, we are doomed to
repeat our mistakes in the future. ●
19
Bringing the Community in Our Doors
By Steve Spears, Vice President of Consumer Goods and Hardware
UFC’s strategic initiatives for the next 100 years ask us to focus
on what we do with “relentless intentionality.” That is how the
team at UFC Farm Supply planned its 2016 Spring Sales Event,
held April 24 at our Maple Plain and Waconia stores.
O
ur goal was to generate excitement in both communities and
to offer our customers value
that would lead the masses
through our doors. We pulled
out all the stops in promoting this event,
and our hard-working employees set up a
circus-like atmosphere both inside and outside the store that
made folks stop in to see what was happening.
Here are some of the highlights:
• The FFA at Waconia and the 4-H at Maple Plain served hot
dogs, soda and chips to over 3,000 people at this event.
UFC Farm Supply provided all the food and the proceeds
were kept by the two organizations. Being a strong supporter of our local communities is important to us.
• Many vendors participated in this event. For example,
representatives of Exmark® zero-turn lawn mowers and
Stihl® chainsaws and leaf blowers demonstrated their
products, while a Nutrena® feed rep tested customers’ hay
and fielded tough equine questions.
• By the end of the day, over 4,000 customers came to
these two UFC Farm Supply locations and went home
having purchased $113,000 worth of salt, mulch, fertilizer,
grass seed and hardware products. NOTE: Customers of
UFC Farm Supply purchased 10 walk-behind mowers on
that one day.
Photos on this page from the
2016 Spring Sales Event at UFC
Farm Supply in Waconia.
20
www.UFCmn.com
As a result of our 2016 Spring Sales Event, we brought the
community, both current and new customers, into our stores
to experience farm supply in a way they have never experienced it before. The weather was perfect, our team of UFC
Farm Supply employees was ready and the sale was a huge
success. The energy and excitement at both locations was
contagious and the public loved it.
Thanks to the many team members who played different
roles for our Spring Sales Event, from parking cars to greeting our guests. Special thanks to our marketing lead, Amanda
Schaust, who put together an aggressive sales plan for the
event. To every UFC Farm Supply employee—GREAT JOB!
We’re already planning a fall event in connection with the
Carver County Fair. In the past, this has been an equipmentfocused event. This year, it will tell a different story. You’ll feel
like you’re at the store when you walk in. Stay tuned. ●
Tomorrow’s Solutions
Are Here Today
By Dave Eckhoff, Vice President of Agronomy
T
his spring, 80% of the corn in our trade
territory went into the ground in 10 days.
One of the key factors enabling us to
serve our agronomy customers during
this fast-paced planting season was the additional blending tower we installed in the Winthrop fertilizer plant with its High
Intensity Mixer (H.I.M.®).
The majority of our efficiency is centered around the H.I.M., which
combines the best in speed, accuracy and dependability. Load times
were cut in more than half. That’s why this new tower had such a
great impact, allowing us to respond to spreading requests in 12-16
hours. We had trucks in the field, ahead of the floaters rather than
parked under the blending tower.
Not only were our efficiencies improved, but also the quality of
our blended product. (We’re talking blending Rice Krispy’s and Corn
Flakes together and still coming out as cereal product, not dust!)
The H.I.M. creates a high-quality blend in a short amount of time.
Impregnated fertilizer use to take a long time to blend to achieve
even disbursement, but now it blends in a quarter of the time with
perfect coverage and consistency. The H.I.M., coupled with the generous capacity of our dry fertilizer plant at Winthrop, allowed us to
achieve these results.
Our H.I.M. before being installed in the Winthrop blending tour.
Spring dirt work at the site of our new Brownton Ag Service Center.
Our progress at Brownton
Every year, farmers are increasing their efficiencies. Equipment
is getting larger and the velocity at which you plant increases every
year. To stay relevant and add value, UFC needs to do the same.
That is the core concept of why the Brownton Ag Service Center is
being built. We need to stay in front of your needs to continue to
add value to your operation.
The 52,800-ton dry plant will be equipped with an even bigger H.I.M. than the one at Winthrop. The capabilities of the facility
include a 1,200-ton/hour whole car receiving system and a 500-ton/
hour loadout capacity! In addition to the dry fertilizer shed, we’re
building almost 3 million gallons of liquid fertilizer storage and a
state-of-the-art, fully automated bulk chemical facility at Brownton.
This facility will have dedicated farmer and UFC lanes with 24-hour
loadout capacities, ensuring our customers receive high-quality,
superior service.
We had a fabulous spring, during which our contractors made a
lot of progress with the Brownton project. Mathiowetz Construction
did an excellent job doing the dirt work on time and R&R moved the
rail for us so we didn’t get in the way of grain shuttles. Because of
their quality of work and professionalism, they performed key tasks
ahead of schedule.
By the time you read this, the vertical building will be rising
higher and higher from the ground, courtesy of SMA, our builder,
and Waconia Manufacturing, our equipment manufacturer. The site
superintendent is UFC’s own Jay Walterman, who is coordinating the
construction and uploaded photos of the progress to our website.
Check it out at www.UFCmn.com/brownton-construction.
We expect to be able to receive fertilizer into the new plant by
Dec. 1 and be fully operational by March 1, 2017. ●
See the latest construction progress at
www.UFCmn.com/brownton-construction.
21
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WE’RE COMING
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for in-furrow application. It’s a groundbreaking development that keeps nutrients
from becoming bound in the soil to make them more available for your growers’ crops.
Help your growers unlock nutrients to maximize nutrient efficiency with Levesol.
PremiumFertilizer.com
22
www.ufcmn.com
©2015 West Central. Levesol is a trademark of West Central Distribution, LLC.
We’ve expanded our
rental inventory at
Gaylord.
Service Dryers and Legs Before Harvest
I
By Tyler Zollner, Vice President of Ag Service
t’s never too soon to be thinking about getting
your dryer serviced. Letters have gone out to
those who have had dryer and leg crew work done
in the past.
If you have not received this letter and are interested in having your dryer or grain legs serviced, call the
Gaylord Ag Service Center or the Lafayette Ag Service
Center.
Crews from Gaylord and Lafayette perform maintenance on and repair grain handling systems across
UFC’s trade territory, including customers of our newest
Ag Service Center at Hamburg.
Our dryer technicians will service your GSI-Airstream,
Farm Fans and Kan-Sun dryers, checking the dryer components and repairing or replacing any worn parts. All
dryers are fire tested. This pre-season dryer service program helps eliminate dryer start-up problems, improve
efficiencies and reduce in-season operating costs.
For a quote on servicing grain legs, call Gaylord
(507-237-4203) or Lafayette (507-228-8224). Service
fees vary with the time and materials required.
Now would also be a great time to
update the capacity and functionality
of your grain handling system. We still
have time to put up additional bins
or to add vent fans, cross augers or
power sweeps to existing bins. NOTE:
UFC’s Ag Service Department has three
cranes for hire to make changes to your grain handling
system.
Gaylord rentals grow
Due to increased demand, we’ve expanded our
equipment rental inventory at the Gaylord Ag Service
Center. We have a good selection of skid steers and
attachments for rent, and also a mini-excavator. Call
507-237-4203 to see if we have what you need.
As always, we are fully stocked with new and used
tillage equipment and grain carts at the Lafayette Ag
Service Center. Call 507-228-8224 if you are interested
in having a demo of any of our tillage equipment. We’ll
set up an appointment. ●
23
PRSRT STD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
VISTACOMM
705 East 4th Street
PO Box 461
Winthrop, MN 55396
www.UFCmn.com
Join Us for Our
Customer Appreciation Events
MONDAY, AUG. 22, 2016
4–8 P.M.
BERDAN CENTER, WINTHROP OFFICE
TUESDAY, AUG. 23, 2016
4–8 P.M.
HAMBURG AG SERVICE CENTER
Visit www.UFCmn.com for more details.
KNOW-HOW IS GREAT. KNOW-WHEN-WHEREWHAT-WHY-HOW IS GREATER.
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they arise, before it’s too late. With the R7 ® Tool, you’ll
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