Nearly A Million Federal Dollars For Grain Elevator

by Jeff Rusack, Reporter
August 23, 2012 6:02 PM


Grain elevators and feed mills seem to be in every other small town throughout the Midwest but the ones that are nearing completion in Magnolia, Minnesota will be a big upgrade for southwestern Minnesota.   

“It will take corn and soy bean for about a hundred miles around,” said Colleen Landkamer of the USDA.

“It'll do about 120 tons an hour when it's at capacity,” said Frank McDowell the general manager of New Vision Co-op. “A lot of these mills do 40 ton an hour. We have one that does 60 and that's our top end. So, we're roughly double our normal capacity.”

Nearly a million dollars was loaned from the US Department of Agriculture to local organizations that will help construct the 13 million dollar project.   

“It's a big deal,” said McDowell.  

Colleen Landkamer the Minnesota state director of rural development for the USDA believes the mill and elevator will do wonders for the local economy.

“It's all about investing in rural communities,” said Landkamer.  

Organizers of the project feel a sign of money being injected into the local economy can only be a good thing for ranchers and farmers that have been struggling this year.  

“Some of the crops are looking pretty good, some are looking tough and the drought has been creeping up from Iowa,” said Landkamer.   

While construction crews continue to build the structures that tower into the air in Magnolia, officials hope a government loan will help to bring more jobs and money to the area.

The grain elevator won't be open and ready for business until November. The feed mill isn't expected to be operational until next June.