News

FS GRAIN expanding market access in Illinois

The general manager of FS GRAIN says a new partnership with Union Pacific and CSX railroads will bring corn farmers access to new markets.

Cory Winstead says the company plans to construct a shuttle loader at its grain facility in St. Anne, Illinois.

“Today we ship maybe 50 cars a month.”  He says, “This will be 120 car UP trains, and you know, 90 car CSX trains.”

He tells Brownfield the new intermodal facility means more market access for farmers throughout the region.

“We feel like our draw will be substantial there.”  He says, “We’ll pull from Indiana, but once this is completed, we’ll ship shuttle units to the southeast, to the west, Texas, to Mexico, and gives a lot of opportunities and options.”

Winstead says the upgrades will greatly improve efficiency and the amount of grain the facility can process.

“We will have, when this thing is completed, the ability to dump 450 trucks in an eight-hour window, and also load out on a rail 420-450,000 bushels in an eight-hour window.”

He says the project breaks ground in December with a projected completion date by fall 2026.

FS GRAIN, headquartered in Morris, Illinois, is an LLC formed by FS member cooperatives and GROWMARK to provide grain services in Northern Illinois at its 19 locations. 

AUDIO: Cory Winstead – FS GRAIN

Photo courtesy of FS GRAIN