Co-op is unique in our ability to offer value to Western-Canadian producers through mutually beneficial relationships.
From the outset, farmers and ranchers invested in their local Co-ops and purchased the goods they needed to run their operations. In return, these local Co-op stores would return the profits they earned back to their members.
While this benefit remains as true today as it did 100 years ago, our relationship has developed over time. Going into your local CO-OP® Agro Centre for the products and services to help you grow your crops and raise your livestock is just a starting point.
We not only serve and supply you, but we also directly and indirectly purchase your products.
Introducing The Co-op Ethanol Complex
One of the most recent developments in this story is the Co-op Ethanol Complex (CEC), formerly known as Terra Grain Fuels. In May 2019, Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL), the manufacturing and wholesale partner of the more than 160 local co-operative associations that own it — announced the acquisition of the ethanol-production facility in Belle Plaine, Sask.
The facility produces up to 150 million litres of ethanol every year, which is used primarily in the production of CO-OP® fuels at the Co-op Refinery Complex (CRC). The CEC has the capability of using a variety of starch-based crops as feedstocks. Since opening in 2008, the facility has purchased about 350,000 tonnes of wheat, corn, rye and triticale every year from Western-Canadian farmers.
For every tonne of grain used, we can produce about 400 litres of ethanol and 350 kilograms of dried distillers’ grains (DDG), a premium product resulting from the fermentation and distillation process.
DDGs are a good energy and protein source that supplements livestock feed rations, mainly for beef and dairy cattle but also swine and poultry. While values may change based on the feedstock used, our DDGs often have a nutritional value that is 32 per cent protein and six per cent fat. The CEC produces about 130,000 tonnes of DDGs every year.
Altogether, the impact of the CEC on the economy is significant. The facility has 47 full-time Team members and contributes more than $100 million per year to the economy.
We are connected to you as trusted partners, and we are integrated into the economy. Together, we’re working to share success and build our Western-Canadian communities. That’s why we are a different kind of business.
For information on the Co-op Ethanol Complex and contract pricing, visit www.fcl.crs/ethanol.