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CHS to Close or Sell 3 Grain Elevators

Todd Neeley 6/03 1:11 PM

LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- CHS Inc. will either close or sell three grain elevators in southern Minnesota, the company announced this week, following reported financial losses in the second quarter of 2026.

Those facilities in Kasson, Ostrander and Wykoff are expected to operate through the 2026 harvest, according to the company, leaving the future of more than 6 million bushels of grain storage in question.

Jim Morken, senior director of operations at CHS, told DTN in a statement that recent upgrades made by the company on two other facilities made the decision possible.

"We will continue to buy grain from customers for delivery to local processing and river facilities," Morken said.

"CHS has recently made significant investments in Mankato and Fairmont and more farmers in this area are now delivering directly to those facilities."

The company reported a second-quarter net loss of $147.1 million. That loss represents a 95% increase in the $75.8 million net loss reported at the same time in 2025.

"CHS continues to optimize its assets to best serve our owners while providing market access to the global ag supply chain," Morken said.

"We continually evaluate our facilities to determine if they meet the needs of our cooperative system and our customers. While smaller facilities, such as these three, have served CHS well in the past, the grain supply chain in southern Minnesota has evolved into a market where local corn and soybean processing facilities and river terminals are the primary markets."

CHS also closed its grain elevator in Claremont, Minnesota, and a large grain terminal at the Port of Duluth-Superior in 2025, according to media reports.

Morken said the company is committed to "operating the right resources in the right locations to position our cooperative to deliver the best value for customers and owners."

CHS said it would continue to operate in the region by offering agronomy and energy products and services to producers in the area.

While CHS is planning a divestiture from the three elevators in southern Minnesota, the company has invested in other elevators.

"A new grain storage and handling facility in Worthing, South Dakota, was completed in July 2025 and additional retail capabilities are expected to be operational in fiscal year 2026 as grain-handling facilities are expanded in Kindred, North Dakota; Lansford, North Dakota; and Warren, Minnesota," the company said in its 2025 annual report.

"Ongoing strategic optimization and alignment of ag retail assets also included acquisition of an independent Nebraska grain facility and sale of two CHS grain assets to a member cooperative and sale of CHS retail energy operations in Illinois to a member cooperative in August 2025."

In addition, the company closed a grain elevator in Superior, Wisconsin, in 2025.

In April 2024, CHS announced plans to buy eight Cargill grain facilities in five states.

Those Cargill elevators are in Pipestone and Maynard, Minnesota; Morris and Seneca, Illinois; Holdrege, Nebraska; Cheyenne Wells and Byers, Colorado; and in Parker, South Dakota. In all, the purchase was to add about 15.5 million bushels of grain storage capacity to CHS's business.