Co-op pays out $583,000 to members, customers
Better-than-usual wheat and barley prices and high energy prices helped return a record $248,000 in cash patronage to about 230 members of CHS Kalispell.
That cash payout is only part of the overall distribution. It's augmented by another $335,000 in stock awarded to patrons of the cooperative, for a record total distribution of $583,000.
"That's a lot of money, especially in this economic time," General Manager Mark Lalum said Friday.
The CHS Kalispell office is a locally controlled division of CHS Inc. - formerly Cenex Harvest States - a nationwide energy, grains and foods cooperative.
It's not just the prices of grain and fuel that drove the record distribution.
"We had a year with drought around the world and record sales of crops," Lalum said. "The United States happened to be one of the countries that had a crop."
Cash patronage is based on business people have conducted with the company during fiscal 2008, while equity redemptions and preferred stock represent retirement of patrons' ownership in the cooperative that they earned through business in past years.
"We're extremely proud that we can provide this tremendous return to our customers and owners," Lalum said in a prepared statement.
"This ability to provide a return on their investment, as well as reinvest in the future of a business they own, is one of the great advantages of being associated with a cooperative like CHS Kalispell on the local level, as well as the larger CHS Inc. system."
It follows last year's distribution of $278,000, split between cash and stock reinvestment in the company. Each member's share is based on the amount of business and the type of business - grain, fuel or other transactions - he or she did with CHS Kalispell.
Last year's split figured to about 35 percent of the distribution in cash and 65 percent in stock. But this year's distribution is about 42 percent in cash, primarily because several patrons are 70 and older so are entitled to receive all their distribution in cash.
Lalum said he hand-delivered the larger checks directly to Kalispell co-op members and mailed out the rest.
People with questions, or who think they are eligible, should contact the cooperative at 755-7400.
Nationally, CHS expects to return up to $343 million during 2009 in cash patronage, equity redemptions and preferred stock to 1,200 companies and more than 35,000 producers in 48 states.
When completed, it will mark the largest distribution to owners ever made by a U.S. cooperative and a fifth consecutive record by CHS. The cooperative's net income for its fiscal year ending Aug. 31, 2008, was $803 million.
CHS Kalispell has several locations. The main office, propane department and country store are at 150 First Ave. W. The feed and fence store and grain elevator are at 505 W. Center St. The farm and fence store, fertilizer and agronomy plant and tire and auto store are at 55 Fourth Ave. E.N. And the convenience store is at 120 W. Idaho.
CHS Inc. is a Fortune 200 Company, meaning it stands in the top 200 on the Fortune 500 list.
Reporter Nancy Kimball may be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at nkimball@dailyinterlake.com