Loading...
The Lucknow Sentinel, 1987-03-18, Page 36O Page 20 WALKERTON `� SHUR•GAIN FARM SUPPLY 881-1971 Providing you with: *Shur -gain Livestock Feed Bags & Bulk *Complete line of Pet Foods *Animal Health Care Products *Water Softener Salt *Fencing & Hardware * Forage Seed *Seed Grain *Seed Corn *Bulk Garden Seeds *Weed Control Chemicals * Lawn & Garden Products *And Much, Much More. DROP IN TO SEE, RAY or DAN - at 5.Peter Street NOW! Business thrives in community by Cindy Maloney CHEPSTOW—In the very competitive field of grain elevator operations, Lang Farm Ltd., of Chepstow, prides itself on keeping a strong clientele and a successful business. Tony Lang, owner of the business, believes the strong community support he and his wife, Elaine, have received has been a dominant factor in keeping their business thriving. Between the grain drying -elevator business, their seed business, and cropping more than 1,000 acres, the Langs are kept busy throughout the year. The harvest season is definitely their busiest time, sometimes needing up to 10 full-time employees. Although Lang serves farmers from as far away as Collingwood, the majority of his customers are area farmers. "The local people in this area have been tremendous to us while we were getting this off the ground. Their support has been 100 per cent," says Lang. To show their appreciation, the Langs hold an annual curling bonspiel for all the people who have supported them. It's their way of saying thanks The ° Langs started the business on their own in 1973.because they wanted to diversify their interests and also. because they realiz- ed there was a need for it in this area. Cur- rently, there are similar operators from Chesley and Port Elgin to Wingham, Under- wood and Ripley. Lang maintains the business is "very competitive." "It's just like a McDonald's operation-- you make a few cents on every bushel. If the business does not have the proper manage- ment, it can lose large amounts of money in a very short time." Elevator operator is the middle man Once the corn, wheat, soybeans or barley have been purchased from the farmer and graded and tested for moisture, it is dried and stored until it can be sold back to the farmer or a manufacturer. The corn may be sold to a company like Canadian Mist in Col- lingwood and the wheat may be sold in Goderich to be exported, or to an Ontario miller. No matter where the product goes, Lang says it is often difficult for the elevator~ operator to make money when he is a mid- dle man between the farmer and the " manufacturer. If he can't sell the finished product at the same grade as he bought it from the farmer, he -can find himself not making any money. "Some of those manufacturers can be very tough on their grading. The end-users tend not to be as lenient as we are to the farmers. Any elevator operator would be more than happy if the product leaves the elevator at the same grade it came in at." One thing Lang says he strongly recom- mends to all farmers is they deal with a licenced operator. These operators are covered under the grain finance ,protection act which guarantees payment to farmers in case of elevator default. Although he said his business has never had any problems, he does remember a few 'years ago some farmers losing money because of a problem with an elevator operator. "With the agriculture business the way it is today, all the farmer needs is to not get paid for his crop." The Langs have slowly expanded the elevator part of their business over the last decade, although they did start out doing custom drying right from the beginning. In 1976 they started marketing crops and in 1980 a storage and continuous drying facility was built. The latest expansion was com- pleted in 1985. Today, he says, the equip- ment they have would cost almost $1 million to build. The equipment at Lang Farms has a 120,000 bushel storage capacity, which he says is relatively small compared to large commercial operators in Ontario. However, the capacity Lang Farms has to process a crop is high, as it is able to receive about 5,000 bushels an hour. "Our equipment compares very well with other operators in this area." He says 1986 was an average year in terms of yields and volume, with corn re- maining constant and an increase in wheat volume. On the whole, he says yields and volumes have been steadily increasing each year. Lang says he is still surprised at the amount of clerical work involved in the business, but he enjoys it, saying the farmers are the ones who really make it worthwhile. "It is really enjoyable to work with farmers when they deliver their grains at harvest time. You can see the sense of pride on their faces and sort of internal fulfillment they feel knowing they are helping to feed the world. The only depressing side of it is the price, which we have no control over."' CONSIGNMENT AND INVENTORY REDUCTION t li Tuesday, April 7, 19.87 .11:00 A.M. Reavie Farm Equipment Ltd. Hwy. No. 86 2 miles west LUCKNOW 529'.7995 Farmers: Turn your equipment into extra cash Consign early Auctioneer: Gordon H. Brindley 777 J