OMAHA, NE – Ag Processing, Inc. (AGP), a cooperative, announced today that the company will be undertaking a multimillion dollar project at its Dawson, MN soy processing plant to improve operational efficiencies.
“The AGP Board of Directors approved this project which will ensure the competitive viability of our Dawson facility for a long time into the future,” said Cal Meyer, Group Vice President, Processing, Refined Vegetable Oils and Industrial Products. “We look forward to continuing the many benefits this plant provides for local cooperatives, area farmers, rural communities and AGP. We appreciate the outstanding employee team and community support in the Dawson area.”
The centerpiece of the project is replacement of the plant’s two original extractors with a modern, single extractor. The extractor is instrumental in soybean processing, removing soybean oil from the flake in the process of producing soybean meal and soybean oil.
Detailed engineering and equipment purchasing will begin later this year with construction slated to start in the spring of 2010. The project is expected to be completed by late summer of 2011.
The Dawson facility has served as an area market for the sale of soybeans and as a source of soybean meal dating back to the early history of soybean processing in Minnesota. Currently over 550,000 acres of soybeans are processed annually at the Dawson plant, which produces soybean meal and soybean oil that AGP sells into domestic and international markets.
“This plant has represented value-added agriculture for a long time, and this improvement project will continue to help AGP fulfill its mission to area farmers well into the future,” said Brad Davis, Chairman of the AGP Board of Directors. “By processing agricultural products locally, farmers and rural communities benefit from the economic activity as opposed to simply shipping the soybeans out of the area.”
“Soybean utilization continues to reach all-time highs, with exciting value-added opportunities in food products, growing industrial uses such as soy biodiesel and new environmental-friendly soy-based products,” said Marty Reagan, AGP’s Chief Executive Officer. “AGP plans to create and capitalize on these opportunities and return the benefits to local cooperatives and their farmer-owners. Over the past decade, AGP has invested heavily in its core asset base of processing, refining and industrial products.”
AGP is the largest farmer-owned soybean processor in the world, owned by local and regional cooperatives representing over 250,000 farmers from 16 states throughout the U.S. and Canada. More information about AGP can be found on the company’s website at www.agp.com.
Source: AGP News Release
