Mid-County Newsletter MCnewsletter-spring10

Spring 2010 • Vol. 17 www.midcountycoop.com MID-COUNTY 75 t h 1935 - 2010 ANNIVERSARY Serving You With Honesty, Integrity & Value since 1935 M essenger On Solid Ground Celebrating 75 Years Back in December 2008, we purchased the bulk fuel route of Mayer Dis- tributing in Long Lake. In October 2009, we ac- quired the Lubricants portion of their business, Bill Reimers as well. We now have a General Manager greatly expanded prod- (952) 466-3721 [email protected] uct line and we also have a bulk oil truck that is running on a regularly scheduled route. With our ad- ditional volume, we have the ability to be more com- petitively priced since we have access to more suppli- ers and we are able to purchase in larger quantities. We currently have contract pricing for propane for next fall and winter. Remember, with Mid-County, you can contract propane year-round. Contract prices are higher than last year, but have come down from the high prices we experienced in the peak of the past heating season. Diesel fuel contracts for future delivery, on the other hand, have not been attractive to purchase. Fundamentally, the US has very low demand and very high inventories of diesel fuel. The price of diesel fuel should be lower than it is, but the investment com- munity is still investing heavily into commodities, propping prices up. Historically, energy prices are at their lowest from December to February and then climb until mid-July, when they start to decline. Being diversifi ed defi nitely has its advantages, and that is part of our success. We are usually insulated from the eff ects of the economy, but there are a few areas that have impacted us. One area is in our auto and truck repair business. We are no longer going to perform on-farm tire service for large tires. We will re- pair any tire in our shop, but on-farm tire repairs will be performed by Sam’s Tire in Glencoe. We have worked out an agreement with them whereby you can either call us or you can call them. If you don’t have an ac- count with them, you can bill it through Mid-County. Our Tire Service truck needs to be replaced, and with the quality of tires today, there are not enough repairs to justify a replacement unit. Our Convenience Store, on the other hand, has de- fi ed the economy and has been growing. With the in- creased traffi c on Highway 212 and our conversion to Holiday, we are showing an increase in gasoline and diesel fuel gallons when most stations are showing a decrease. The conversion to Holiday has been a good one and not without its challenges, but the sales re- sults have been positive. We still own, staff , and manage the store. We have only changed who we purchase our products from for the store. The franchise agreement requires we buy all of the gasoline, diesel fuel and any other products for the store through Holiday. They will not allow us to buy any gasoline or diesel for any other parts of the company, it is strictly for the store. Our bulk products remain mostly Cenex fuels. Welcome aboard Sean Eastman as our new direc- tor. Sean has been operating Marsh Lake Hunting Pre- serve by Victoria for several years. And a thank you to Merlyn Wanous for his years of service as a director. As always, I appreciate your comments and sug- gestions to make your coop better. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Crop Scouting ................................................2 Mid-County welcomes Jim Aritt ....................3 Expanding Lubricants ....................................4 All About Fuels ..............................................5 Specializing in Heavy Truck Repair ................6 Merlyn Wanous retires ..................................7 Shawn Eastman elected to board ..................7 (952) 466-3700 • 888-466-3700 • 700 West Lake Street, P.O. Box 177, Cologne H O N E S T Y • I N T E G R I T Y • V A L U E