ILLINOIS farmers stand on the 

 threshold of a new era in grain 

 marketing. As the result of action 

 taken within the last several weeks 

 by the Illinois Grain Terminals 

 Company and the Illinois Agricultural 

 Association, the Farm Bureau's grain 

 merchandising program is now picking 

 up speed. 



Step by step this great overall co-- 

 operative grain merchandising plan has 

 been taking shape — now it is ready to 

 go into a vital stage of development. 



Action was authorized on two major 

 fronts in mid-October by the lAA and 

 Illinois Grain Terminals. 



A financing plan was adopted pro- 

 viding for the sale of three-quarters 

 of a million dollars in capital stock to 

 start the venture. 



One of the country's outstanding 

 grain men was hired as merchandising 

 manager of the Terminals Company. 



A third important step in the pro- 

 gram, approved prior to the October 

 board meetings, was the purchase of a 

 site for a Chicago terminal elevator. 

 This purchase covers 11 acres adjacent 

 to the Calumet River at 106th Street 

 on Chicago's south side. It is accessible 

 for lake transport boats. 



Thus the Farm Bureau is moving 

 ahead with a grain merchandising pro- 

 gram geared to meet modern grain 

 marketing trends. 



It's a big plan and to understand the 

 importance of recent developments, it's 

 necessary to go back and take another 

 look at the overall program. , 



The general plan was approved back 

 in 1945 by the lAA after a study of 

 two years by a staff committee and 

 many conferences with various groups. 



It was clear at the outset that there 

 were many steps in a complete market- 

 ing job. Marketing means more than 

 delivering the grain to the local co- 

 operative elevator or even performing 

 a brokerage service. 



A complete marketing job includes 

 not only brokerage and transportation, 

 but also merchandising and even proc- 

 essing in some cases. And merchandis- 

 ing includes operation of terminals ele- 

 vators, storing, and blending grain. 



Therefore if the producer is to get 

 a larger share of the marketing dollar, 

 he and his cooperative have to perform 

 more of the steps in the marketing job. 

 He must follow his grain beyond the 

 local elevator. 



With these facts established, the 

 ^rain marketing department of the lAA 

 went to work. Terminal elevators 

 were definitely part of the overall plan. 

 But first the producer had to build up 

 operations. 



$amu«l L. Hassell 



It also was apparent that any grain 

 merchandising program could not over- 

 look the Illinois and Mississippi water- 

 ways as important channels to principal 

 terminal markets. Long-range truck- 

 ing was also found to be increasing the 

 volume of river grain marketing. 



Therefore, during the last several 

 years, the merchandising program has 

 moved forward to take advantage of 

 these trends. 



County-wide grain companies have 

 been organized by Farm Bureaus. 



Some county service companies have 

 developed grain marketing facilities. 



Regional operations have been organ- 

 ized and operating for several years on 

 the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers by 

 Western Illinois Grain Company, 

 Havana River Grain Company, and 

 Prairie Grain Company. These regional 

 operations include sub-terminal river 

 elevators and inland elevators. Probably 

 two or three more regionals will be 

 established on the Illinois and Missis- 

 sippi Rivers. 



All of these operations are Farm 

 Bureau-type cooperatives and are part 

 of a coordinated grain marketing pro- 

 gram. 



Now the grain merchandising pro- 

 gram has progressed to the terminal 

 elevator stage and that is going to take 

 considerable money. 



Farm Bureau type grain marketing 

 cooperatives of Illinois have already in- 

 vested approximately $1,450,000 in 

 river sub-terminal elevators and other 

 facilities. 



But more money will be required to 

 finance terminal elevators and to buy 

 and sell grain at the terminal level. 



In addition to the Chicago terminal 

 elevator, for which a site has been pur- 

 chased, it is planned to have terminal 



facilities on the Mississippi at St. Louis, 



and perhaps others will be found neces- 

 sary at a later date. 



The Chicago terminal elevator's ca- 

 pacity probably will be in excess of 

 three million bushels. The St. Louis 

 elevator will be smaller. 



It may also be found necessary to 

 establish transportation facilities, such 

 as river grain barges. 



Several million dollars of capital will 

 be needed to complete this merchandis- 

 ing program. 



The first phases of the financing will 

 be carried on through the sale of stock 

 to the river grain companies mentioned 

 previously, country grain companies, 

 service companies. Farm Bureau type 

 elevators, county Farm Bureaus, and 

 other organizations vitally interested 

 in a complete grain marketing program. 

 The lAA and other Farm Bureau 

 affiliates of course have and will iiuesi 

 money in the venture. 



Farm Bureau members will, for the 

 most part, carry the risk. Farm Bureau 

 members also will put forth most of 

 the effort to raise the money. 



Because of the effort and investment. 

 it seems fair and reasonable that the 

 new grain merchandising program is 

 set up as a Farm Bureau-type coopera- 

 tive with patronage earnings, when 

 available, passing down through region- 

 al or local Farm Bureau-type coopera- 

 tives to the Farm Bureau member. 



To run the merchandising end of 

 this program, the Illinois Grain Termi 

 nals Company has hired Sam L. Hassell 

 of Buffalo, N. Y., who has been operat 

 ing his own successful business in thai 

 city. 



G. H. Iftner, lAA director of grain 

 marketing, now will be able to devote 

 more time to the overall phases of 

 grain marketing. 



Hassell has a long and fine record 

 in the grain marketing field. During 

 the war he served as assistant regional 

 director of Commodity Credit Corpora- 

 tion in charge of all grain operations 

 and exports originating east of the Mis- 

 sissippi River. He handled allocations of 

 wheat made by the lower lakes grain com- 

 mittee and also handled governmental 

 corn and wheat programs with distil 

 leries making alcohol for ammunition, 

 synthetic rubber, and other war pur- 

 poses. 



Hassell got started in the grain busi 

 ness in 1921 in Kansas City, Mo., with 

 the Equity Union Grain Company, and 

 after traveling several years opened 

 several branch offices for this coopera- 

 tive. He became manager at Omaha in 

 1930. 



In 1931, Hassell was employed bv the 

 Farmers National Grain Corporation at 

 Chicago and had charge of branch 

 (Continued on pane 30) 



NOVEMBER, 1948 



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