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Comfrey • Morgan • Morton • Springfield • Wabasso
Vol. 14 No. 4 • December 2012

www.HarvestLand.com

108 years
Strong
Purposeful Planning Delivers Successful Year
We have just completed our year-end financial audit, and have put two primary strategies
the board has met with the auditors. The numbers confirm in place to help us deliver on
another strong performance for Harvest Land Cooperative, this core value.
with all divisions growing and operating profitably.
First, we are committed to deliv-
Here are a few of the financial highlights: ering a consistent dividend and
Sales $263,000,000 equity payout while providing a
Local earnings $3,700,000 diversified portfolio of products,
Patronage refunds received $2,700,000 services, and knowledge. We
Net margin after taxes $6,100,000 are also committed to timely,
efficient market access.
Patronage Rates 2012
Cash patronage 50% $1,676,527 Second, we will maintain an By DENNIS SCHREIER
Equity retirements 65 and older $902,970 internal risk-management
GENERAL MANAGER
Scholarships paid $21,700 strategy to protect Harvest Land Cooperative, and at the
same time provide external risk management resources
Capital Projects/Purchases 2012 to protect our owners.
Springfield terminal crop nutrient
blending and storage $1,000,000 Purpose and focus are very important ingredients in
Agronomy operations custom our success. But it is the commitment of the board of
application equipment $1,665,000 directors, management team, employees, and you, our
owners, that translates this purpose into reality. Thank
While on the subject of finances, please check your tax you for another successful year. I look forward to seeing
ID numbers when you receive your 1099s in January. If you at the annual meeting on January 7 in Springfield. n
we do not have your number, or it is incorrect, please
notify us as soon as possible.

Pursuing our purpose
The theme for this year’s annual statements is our
purpose statement, “Committed to Our Owners’
Success.” We achieve success as an organization
because our focus is on our owners and your success.
Our decision-making is always guided by this question:
Will this benefit our owners and help build our relation-
ship with them?

As we look back at our performance at year’s end, this
is a natural time to emphasize one of our core values—
financial strength and stability. This is particularly
important in a volatile world and ag economy, so we

Record-Setting Fall
The early harvest was a real shot in the With the storage and blending expansion
arm for fall application. When the pace completed during the past few years, we’ve
finally slows, we will have covered a record greatly increased our blending and loadout
number of acres since the crops came out. speed. Now we’ve added new tenders and
It’s always a good position to be in, because applicators to convert that capacity into
you never know what spring will look like. faster service for our customers. We’re
ready to handle whatever spring has in
We will be adding application equipment store. n
to help us continue to meet your need for
application services. Some of that new
equipment will also enable us to offer a new
service—custom sidedressing 32%. By Joel Kretsch
Operations

In General, a Good Harvest
Though expectations weren’t too high to expect to begin shipping corn trains to the
begin with, harvest in our trade territory west coast export market in late winter.
was generally better than most people
anticipated. Of course, some areas were In the meantime, the domestic market has
hard hit by drought and by wind, which seen steady demand for feed grains and
put some corn on the ground. the ethanol grind is down from last year’s
5 billion bushels, with the USDA projecting
We shipped several bean trains this fall for a 4.5- billion-bushel grind this crop year.
export with one or two to go, but only one
corn train as the west coast bean program Finally, I want to mention that long-time grain
was (and still is) in high gear. After the driver Clem Wersal is retiring in December
export bean program begins to wind down after 15 years with Harvest Land Coopera-
we expect corn exports to pick up as world tive. We wish you all the best in retirement
By Kevin DeBerg feed grains are fairly tight. At this time we Clem. n
Grain Merchandiser

Page 2 2
Page ©2012 Harvest Land Cooperative. All Reserved. Published in partnership with with VistaComm (www.VistaComm.com).
©2010 Harvest Land Cooperative. All RightsRights Reserved. Published in partnershipVistaComm (www.VistaComm.com).
® ®

Keeping Tabs on Farm Bill
The 2012 farm bill has every person in the about the 2012 farm bill and potential
agricultural industry waiting on the edge of changes in your biggest risk management
their seats for the House of Representative tool, crop insurance.
to take action! The 2012 farm bill passed
the Senate in June 2012 with bipartisan We will be hosting Producer Outlook
support but has not yet received a vote in meetings in January. Please continue to
the House. watch for more information about dates,
times, and locations on Facebook and our
AgQuest and Harvest Land are partnering to websites: www.AgQuest.biz and www.
By kathy mainer
bring you the latest news and information harvestland.com for breaking news. n Agquest insurance
office manager

Ready to Help You Grow
By GLENN FISHER, Feed Division Manager

It’s been a good year for the Harvest Land management. We have plenty of capacity to
feed division, highlighted by the addition of handle additional feed business, so if you’re
swine specialist Kevin Langemo. Kevin is looking to expand—or just want to make a
available to help you grow your operation, positive change—consider Harvest Land.
and he’s been out in the country meeting
some of you already. If you’re in the swine Finally, I want to mention that long-time
business, Kevin can be a valuable resource feed delivery driver Ron Turbes is retiring in
for you. December after 31 years with Harvest Land.
Fortunately, we’re going to continue to see
We also have barns available and can offer him on a part-time basis. We wish him all
several pig sourcing options and solid risk the best in retirement. n

HARVEST LAND ANNUAL MEETING
Monday, January 7th, 12:00-Lunch, 1:00 Meeting at the Springfield Community Center

Parents—Your Cooperative Can Help With College
If you’re a Harvest Land patron, your equity in the coopera- university, technical college, or business college. The
tive can help fund your student’s college education. College student must be a full-time student, as defined by the
students can receive up to 25% of their parents’ revolving institution they are attending. A copy of a certificate of
fund equity—up to $500 maximum per year per student. enrollment or grade transcript is required.

To qualify, the student’s parents must be members The Harvest Land scholarship program is just another
in good standing with Harvest Land Cooperative. The benefit of the cooperative way of doing business. n
student must be enrolled in an accredited, post-secondary

Page 3

Increased Demand Makes Crop-Protection Planning Essential
Increased weed and insect above could reach sold-out or allocated positions as
tolerance to certain products and early as December 2012.
traits in 2012 created increased
demand for herbicides and insec- Early planning for expected needs of these (as well
ticides to combat these issues. as other) products will be critical as we attempt to
Products that became extremely secure adequate supplies. The sooner our agronomy
hard to secure last year included staff knows your intentions, the greater success we
the herbicides Liberty®, Status®, will have in securing those products at the most com-
and Callisto®, just to name a petitive price. Putting together accurate forecasts with
few. Also, insecticides like Force® your account manager will ensure we have your needs
and any SmartBox® products covered without adding to supply issues by over-book-
basically sold out during the ing.
By Tim Woelfel
early spring period.
Crop Protection Manager
As with any product, when demand increases, price
As the season progressed into late June and early July, generally increases also. To secure early pricing, our
reports of weed and insect infestations became com- agronomy department will attempt to take possession
monplace. Waterhemp resistance and corn rootworm of as much product as possible to meet our projected
infestations were the two most reported problems. needs. However, our warehouse space is limited. We
may ask you to take early possession of certain limited
Preparing for 2013 products, enabling us to secure sufficient quantities of
Looking ahead to the 2013 growing season, the herbi- all products at competitive prices.
cides mentioned above—and many of the pre-plant and
post-emerge soybean products such as Authority® First Please take the time to meet with your account manager
and Flextar®—are expected to be in very high demand. in the next few weeks to discuss your plans for next
And we expect demand to rise for all at-planting insec- season. That will give us the best opportunity to meet
ticides. Some will see sales increase 3 to 4 times from your needs. n
2012 levels. It is probable that some of the products

Day Planner
One of the best features of being a manager is Minnesota West in 2007 and his A.A.S.
that you also get to manage yourself. “I think degree in agronomy from South Central
what I enjoy most about my position is that College in 2011. He joined the Harvest Land
I have the ability to plan my own schedule team in April 2011.
when it comes to day-to-day duties,” states
Neil Roiger, assistant manager of Harvest Editor’s note: In his free time, Neil enjoys
Land’s Comfrey location. woodworking, golf, and spending time
with family and friends. His free time may
Neil, a lifelong Springfield resident, grew up be a bit more limited now, since he and his
on a farm eight miles southwest of town. He wife, Alissa, just welcomed their first child,
earned his A.S. degree in engineering from daughter Addilynn, in November. n

Page 4

Strong Foundation Yields Solid Organization
By Dave Stuk, CEO

We have just completed another successful year at and having employees that
Harvest Land. are truly “Committed to Our
Owners’ Success!”
As Dennis mentioned in his lead article, Harvest
Land Cooperative turned in a strong performance, We believe that our people
with local earnings of $3,700,000. Even better, with are what set this coopera-
our subsidiary companies, AgQuest and Northland tive apart. This includes your
Capital, Harvest Land had consolidated local earnings board of directors. You have
of $8,643,629. The vision of a financially strong, a dedicated board that take their responsibilities of
diversified company that doesn’t rely on any one leading Harvest Land very seriously. So, to help you
division for our success continues to be a reality. to get to know each of the directors a little better,
Every division of the company, whether it was grain, we will be doing a director spotlight in the quarterly
agronomy, feed, finance, energy, or leasing, made an newsletters.
important contribution this year.
The first director we are featuring is our board
We will continue to build upon the strong legacy chairman, Roger Kettner. Roger has been on the
that everyone at Harvest Land has worked so hard Harvest Land board since 1992, and I want to per-
to achieve. This can only happen through building sonally thank him for his many years of support and
strong relationships that stand the test of time contribution to Harvest Land’s success. n

Director Profile - Roger Kettner
With two decades of experience as a member of Morgan. Their youngest son, Dan, recently joined
the Harvest Land Cooperative board of directors, the farming operation. Son Alex, his wife, Kendra,
Roger Kettner has been a part of tremendous change and their three-year-old daughter Ella live in South
and growth—both in the cooperative and in the ag Dakota, where Alex works in the fluid power industry.
industry. A board member since 1992, Roger now
chairs the Harvest Land board. Equipped to lead
The cooperative provides training opportunities
“The board of for directors, and Roger says those opportunities
directors of a coop- become more important as the cooperative grows.
erative is unique in
that the members “These have been good times for agriculture, but
are all customers and there are challenges too,” he notes. “For farmers
owners and active in and for cooperatives, rising input costs and volatile
the industry we serve,” commodity markets are major concerns. Training
Roger says. “We serve isn’t mandatory, but I believe it helps us better guide
as a voice for the the cooperative into the future.”
farmers we represent,
and that’s important. With great challenge comes great opportunity. For
We don’t manage the Roger, that opportunity is personal. “Dan will be the
cooperative, so one of fifth generation of Kettner to farm,” he says. “I’m
our primary duties is to proud of what I do, and I think the U.S. is beginning
hire the best manage- to understand how important ag is to the economy.
ment possible to guide We have a chance to start the next generation of
the company. And we farmers out on the right foot. That’s exciting to me.”
provide input to that management regarding the
needs of our members and try to help deliver what In his spare time, Roger enjoys hunting, fishing, and
our patrons are asking for.” trail riding. “I know it’s my job, but I also consider
my cattle an interest. I really get a lot of satisfaction
Roger and his wife, Sandy (who works for AgQuest), from working with them.” n
have a row-crop and cow/calf operation north of

Page 5

Don’t Wait to Renew
I can’t think of a better way to Here are the items we’ll need to update or receive from
start this article than by officially you for the 2013/2014 crop years:
introducing Melissa Robertson. • 2012 year-end balance sheet (most important)
You can read more about her
• Personal and/or corporate tax returns
below. As our new administra-
tive assistant, she is always • 2013 cash flow
available—even when Mark
• Most recent crop year’s insurance coverage
and I are not. In many cases,
she’ll be able to answer your • Copy of driver’s license
questions or track that answer
• Marketing contracts
down. She can also schedule
appointments with either of us.
Also, if your marketing plans include selling a substan-
By Steve Bach We’re very excited to have her
tial portion of your grain after January 31, 2013, and
AgQuest senior Business on board. Melissa is located in
you have a balance on your 2012 operating loan, you’ll
Relationship Manager the Springfield office and can be
need to come and see us as soon as possible. We’ll
reached at 507-723-7378.
discuss some options.

We’re well into the renewal process now and working
to get funding in place for 2013 and 2014. Our early Real estate too
fall means you can get a jump on putting your final I know many of you think of AgQuest as your best
numbers together. As soon as you get them, come in, source for operating loans, but we’re also very competi-
and we can put your 2013 operating loan in place for all tive when it comes to real estate loans. If you’re looking
your purchases, whether at Harvest Land or elsewhere. for a real estate loan, come talk to us and find out how
And, with the need for forward contracting inputs, we we compare to other lenders. I think you’ll be pleasantly
can also get 2014 financing in place. surprised. n

The Gatekeeper
That’s not fair, really. Gatekeepers are supposed to limit access to
the people they work for. Melissa Robertson actually strives to make
it easier to get in touch with Steve Bach and Mark Kubesh, AgQuest
business relationships managers.

Since September 10, the outgoing Melissa has served as the
constant point of contact for Steve and Mark, who maintain a full
schedule and spend a fair amount of time on the road. “I can do just
about anything you need, from scheduling appointments with Mark
or Steve to answering questions,” Melissa says. “If I don’t know the
answer, I’ll find it for you.”

A marketing major with a degree from St. Cloud State, Melissa
worked for American Family Insurance prior to joining the AgQuest
team. “This is much different, but the job is a lot of fun,” she says.
The work is constantly changing, and I love that. I love working on
one thing and have something else walk in the door. And I like the
team approach and the fact that everyone is willing to help out.”

Editor’s note: Melissa and her husband, Justin, reside in Springfield,
where Justin is a police officer. They have two children, Jazmine
and Jaxon. Both Melissa and Justin are from the area, so they spend
most of their free time with their children and extended family.
Melissa’s most interesting experience: Driving in the Virgin Islands. Steve Bach, Mark
“My first trip outside the U.S. was to St. Thomas. It’s hilly, they drive Kubesh, and Melissa
on the wrong side of the road, and they drive fast!” n Robertson

Page 6

Lessons From 2012
This was definitely a good year Seed treatment earned its keep again this year. Keep in
to judge the agronomic char- mind that seed treatments don’t enhance yield, but offer
acteristics of your hybrids. We protection that allows the seed to deliver on its full yield
were pleased to see how well the potential. All SmartStax seed is treated with Poncho®/
hybrids we placed in your fields VOTiVO® and Acceleron®. We offer Apron® fungicide and
stood up to the extreme growing Acceleron seed treatment, as well as Trident™ liquid and
conditions many of you encoun- QuickRoots™ granular inoculants.
tered this year. Characteristics
like standability really had an Finally, I want to close with a plug for the Harvest Max
impact on final yields. program. We added more great data to our database
this year—local, relevant data that is only available to
Though most of you did a good Harvest Max members. It’s the kind of information that
By Brett Braulick and
Doug Jeske job managing for Goss’s Wilt in can make a real difference in your farming operation, so
2012, we did experience some talk to your account manager about becoming part of
struggles with Western corn rootworm. While you the Harvest Max program. n
should talk to your account manager about managing
rootworm in your situation, we are suggesting the use
of SmartStax® hybrids on all corn-on-corn acres in 2013.
If you’re going to plant any hybrid with a single mode
of action below-ground on corn-on-corn ground, we
recommend you use an insecticide as well.

Acres up, supplies down
Everything is indicating a lot of corn acres for 2013, and
that will make drought-tightened supplies of top hybrids
even tighter. The bottom line: Don’t wait. If you haven’t
been in to see us, get your seed order in right away.

There’s a good program in place with NK seed for the
coming year. If you buy either 24 or 48 units of NK corn,
you’ll receive an attractive discount on Force 3G or Force
CS insecticide. It’s a chance for you to save some money
and plant some excellent seed. Get the details from your
account manager. Western corn rootworm

Off the Road, Still Behind the Wheel
Driving has been a part of Bob Harazin’s a quarry, and then for a construction
life since he was 18. Now’s he’s behind firm. Now he’s on the road again and
the wheel again, but staying closer to loving it.
home.
“It’s close to home, and I work with
Bob joined the Harvest Land staff in a great bunch of people,” Bob states.
October 2011, working part-time for “I’m never bored. This is a really good
the agronomy department. When a deal for me.”
full-time opportunity to drive for the
feed department came open last winter, Editor’s note: Bob has lived in the
Bob made the switch, and has been Morgan area for 30+ years. He and his
enjoying his time on the road. wife, Marilyn, are empty-nesters, with
sons Shane and Tory and daughter
“A neighbor got me started driving over Shannon having flown the coop. Bob
the road when I was 18,” Bob recalls. keeps busy go-cart racing with some
“I was a long-haul driver for several of their five grandchildren and stock car
years and saw a lot of country. But racing with Shane and Tory. “I’m the
when you have a family, it’s hard to be money boss,” Bob says. “It keeps me
on the road.” So Bob, who grew up in out of trouble most weekends.” n
Olivia, worked at a rendering plant, in

Page 7

PO Box 278
Morgan, MN 56266-0278

Licensed Agquest CROP INSURANCE agents AgQuest Insurance Agency is an Equal Opportunity Provider

Morgan 877-626-7453 Lynn Button, Kathy Mainer, Mark Kubesh, Cheryl Manderfeld
507-249-3196 Pat Macht, Dennis Schreier, Mark Vogel, Matt Pietig
Comfrey 507-877-2441 Rick Kastner
Morton 507-697-6113 Todd Beran, Keegan Mammen
Olivia 800-463-3616 Sheri Bakker, Amber Weber
Springfield 507-723-7350 Jim Boyle, Joel Heiling, Tim Woelfel
Wabasso 507-342-5184 Jon Christensen

Learning From Last Year
Now that the 2012 crop season is behind us it’s Proper soil fertility, nutrient
amazing to look back at all the challenges we faced placement, and hybrid placement
throughout the growing season and the yields we were are just some of the consid-
able to obtain. As we enter the winter months we begin erations that should be made
to think about the past growing season. What went when looking ahead to the 2013
right? What went wrong? What hybrid performed the growing season. The ability to
best? What would have I done differently? What will I match the right genetics, on
do again next year? the right soil type at the right
planting population within each
Our ability to manage risk and effectively place high- individual yield environment,
priced inputs is now more important than ever. With allows us to better manage
Harvest Max our account managers have the tools to risk and reduce the effects that
help you manage and track all of these things. Growers Mother Nature has on that crop.
By matt pietig
harvest max
that consistently raise more bushels than their neighbors
year in and year out are the ones that are managing On December 10th we held our annual Harvest Max
risks and decreasing yield limiting factors. meeting. Some of the topics we covered included yield
by soil type, hybrid, and population, Ascend
Trial information, and other lessons learned
from 2012. We also introduced our 300 bushel
corn club and century club for soybeans. If
this is something that interests you, contact
your account manager or me for details.

New for this year, we dedicated the afternoon
session to Tim Eyrich, Winfield’s Solutions
Plant Nutritionist. Tim answered questions
regarding fertility, plant nutrition, and manage-
ment techniques that will help growers take
yields to the next level. Look for more guest
speakers at future meetings to help answer
questions about achieving higher yields. n

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December newlsetter

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