New approach to co-op grain storage

Co-operative grain storage has many advantages, but it can limit members’ marketing choices. So this year, one store has developed an alternative approach.


Colin Godwin, owner of Keysley Store, near Warminster, Wiltshire, has decided to offer simple, independent storage with minimal fees, no capital requirement and no long-term demands on his customers. “When we bought the farm in 1990 we had a 6,500t store, which we gradually built up over the years, offering commercial storage through the various company mergers that ended up as Openfield,” he says.

“We now have the capacity to store 26,400t, and last year stored grain for more than 80 farming businesses. But they were committed to marketing through Openfield, which we felt limited farmers’ choice and store throughput. We thought we could offer a better service operating independently, so that’s what we’re doing.”

Instead of having storage and drying charges deducted from their grain cheque, farmers will pay £8.50/t for use of the store, split between October and March, with drying charges payable on top. “We’ve had to increase our charges a bit to cover insurance of the grain, but, overall, customers will probably pay a bit less than before,” says Mr Godwin. “They can also market through whoever they want, rather than being tied in to just one merchant.”

In 2010, Mr Godwin obtained a 30% Rural Development Programme grant to help double the store’s capacity, install a new Perry 84t/hour drier, and 120t/hour handling machinery. Farmers can therefore tip lorries or trailers extremely rapidly, seven days a week during harvest. By only taking feed wheat and oilseed rape, the turnaround time is very quick, with all loads sampled with the Samplex CS90 on arrival and then tested.

“The sample results go through the computer and on to the weighbridge ticket automatically – if you’re taking milling wheat and malting barley, it can really slow everything up. One year we did take barley and it was a nightmare – this way the rapeseed is mostly finished by the time the wheat starts arriving.

“If the average quality is low, we may have to take claims on the worst samples, but for the past three or four years it’s all made the feed grade.”

Wheat must be moved by 31 May and rapeseed by 30 June, to allow for cleaning before the following harvest. And while merchants can collect when they want to, many will offer advance payment on grain in store, he adds.

Although Mr Godwin opted out of his relationship with Openfield, all the oilseed rape tonnage – 11,000t/year – will be marketed through United Oilseeds, with their standard storage and drying charges. Quality premiums will be based on independent sample results, with growers choosing between fixed sale prices or pool marketing. Storage is booked on an acreage basis, but paid on the tonnage delivered.

“It is a bit scary to give up the 25,000t of storage that Openfield guaranteed us, but we’re hoping that all our previous customers will come with us, and so far nobody has dropped out. Of course some are still marketing their wheat through Openfield, which is absolutely fine – they have complete freedom.”

Need a contractor?

Find one now
See more