Any good buyers left?

[Bushpusher]

There are 4 grain terminals East of Regina right on the #1 and not one of them has a buyer that isn’t greener than grass. Why are all the good experienced buyers leaving? I’ve asked these new folks some questions to feel them out and I either get a blank stare or some bs answer that they think makes them sound smart. I finally hired an marketing advisor this year. Been thinking about it for a while now. Can’t afford the grain cos to train people at my farms expense

[bucket]

I think G3 has scooped guys with long contact lists.

[Blaithin]

All the experienced ones I know jumped ship to new elevators.

[walterm]

There are 4 grain terminals East of Regina right on the #1 and not one of them has a buyer that isn’t greener than grass. Why are all the good experienced buyers leaving? I’ve asked these new folks some questions to feel them out and I either get a blank stare or some bs answer that they think makes them sound smart. I finally hired an marketing advisor this year. Been thinking about it for a while now. Can’t afford the grain cos to train people at my farms expense

Good points but you have been for a long time not only in buyers office but on the grading bench too! It is only going to get worse as some farm groups and the last gov't have turned the quality control to 3rd parties and self regulation. Farmers have chosen to go it alone against multi national companies if they can't make a profit in one area they will in another.

[Bushpusher]

Good points but you have been for a long time not only in buyers office but on the grading bench too! It is only going to get worse as some farm groups and the last gov't have turned the quality control to 3rd parties and self regulation. Farmers have chosen to go it alone against multi national companies if they can't make a profit in one area they will in another.

Good luck locking me out of the grading office again is all I have to say. The Canadian Grain Act states that it’s my right to watch my grade and dockage being assessed. So they can either let me in, or they can remodel their damn offices with a window off the driveway where I can stand and watch. Oh, and make sure the protein tester and scale are where I can read them myself. And make sure your dockage tester is turned so I can see that it’s set properly. The more of us who challenge that stuff, it’ll be easier for all of us.

[walterm]

Good luck locking me out of the grading office again is all I have to say. The Canadian Grain Act states that it’s my right to watch my grade and dockage being assessed. So they can either let me in, or they can remodel their damn offices with a window off the driveway where I can stand and watch. Oh, and make sure the protein tester and scale are where I can read them myself. And make sure your dockage tester is turned so I can see that it’s set properly. The more of us who challenge that stuff, it’ll be easier for all of us.

Totally agree 100% I've spent a lot of time advocating that grain grading should be an apprenticeship trade with everyone that is going to asses quality for human or animal food has to have a certificate just like any other area in the food industry or most any other industry as far as that goes. Farmers need to get on the phone or email and push their representatives to demand accreditation and enforce the regulations we have in place.

[jamesb]

I sure agree that many of the CSR's at many of the elevators are green as grass. With time they many will do well but as in any business some are duds. We will sell regularly to several plants and there is only one or two with what I call a old time type of grain buyer. It is definitely on us as the farmer to make sure things are done right as these young people just don't realize the problem. Funny thing today is grade doesn't seem to matter anymore, its all on price. What is my grain worth net to me? Doesn't matter whether they call it #1 or #3, what is the net price? When some outfits use different grades and protein spreads for their base grades , I always have to ask what's my net price. I think a year like this those with uncontracted grain to sell will be far more in the drivers seat. I'm sure there are is going to be more times of price increases at certain elevators just to finish off a train. I think the "merchant" buying grain that are above the local CSR's for several elevators are going to earn their paycheck this year.

[Bushpusher]

I sure agree that many of the CSR's at many of the elevators are green as grass. With time they many will do well but as in any business some are duds. We will sell regularly to several plants and there is only one or two with what I call a old time type of grain buyer. It is definitely on us as the farmer to make sure things are done right as these young people just don't realize the problem. Funny thing today is grade doesn't seem to matter anymore, its all on price. What is my grain worth net to me? Doesn't matter whether they call it #1 or #3, what is the net price? When some outfits use different grades and protein spreads for their base grades , I always have to ask what's my net price. I think a year like this those with uncontracted grain to sell will be far more in the drivers seat. I'm sure there are is going to be more times of price increases at certain elevators just to finish off a train. I think the "merchant" buying grain that are above the local CSR's for several elevators are going to earn their paycheck this year.

The “merchant” at one of the places I’m talking about has no previous grain experience other sweeping the driveway. How can I trust that person when I’ve caught mistakes made by them on the driveway? Now they’re the one watching the others? Makes zero sense. I asked who they learned from, the names I was given…I laughed. One was the current manager who yet has to leave the safety of their office to talk to me when I’m there. Never seen this person outside of their office once. Just a joke. The other was an idiot, was trying to buy my grain and seemed scared to come to the farm, couldn’t talk farming if his life depended on it, now I hear he’s got a big promotion. This year I’ll be asking to see grade inspector certificates, I want proof that the people grading my grain are actually trained. Or they accept my third party grading cert, or I go elsewhere. Game over. I’m
Not playing anymore

[Blaithin]

The “merchant” at one of the places I’m talking about has no previous grain experience other sweeping the driveway. How can I trust that person when I’ve caught mistakes made by them on the driveway? Now they’re the one watching the others? Makes zero sense. I asked who they learned from, the names I was given…I laughed. One was the current manager who yet has to leave the safety of their office to talk to me when I’m there. Never seen this person outside of their office once. Just a joke. The other was an idiot, was trying to buy my grain and seemed scared to come to the farm, couldn’t talk farming if his life depended on it, now I hear he’s got a big promotion. This year I’ll be asking to see grade inspector certificates, I want proof that the people grading my grain are actually trained. Or they accept my third party grading cert, or I go elsewhere. Game over. I’m
Not playing anymore

Just as a Devils Advocate here, as one of those people on the driveway, I know dick all really about the merchant side. You may notice that in my market posts, of which most are questions. The terminal staff at elevators, in general, have nothing to do with contracts or sales.

Conversely, the merchants rarely have anything to do with the actual grain. Do not expect them to grade or know the processes or the equipment or be of any use out in the terminal.

An idiot can just be an idiot, but just because someone was shitty in the terminal doesn't mean they can't be a good merchant.

Also realize that the people above the merchants you're dealing with on the front lines, the sales reps for the companies who are finding buyers for the grain from the elevators, very rarely have grain or farming experience. They're marketing graduates who've gotten the job, not rural people who've been promoted up to head offices. In the business models for marketing, they don't seem to require a knowledge of grain or terminal processes in order to be merchants.

[Bushpusher]

Just as a Devils Advocate here, as one of those people on the driveway, I know dick all really about the merchant side. You may notice that in my market posts, of which most are questions. The terminal staff at elevators, in general, have nothing to do with contracts or sales.

Conversely, the merchants rarely have anything to do with the actual grain. Do not expect them to grade or know the processes or the equipment or be of any use out in the terminal.

An idiot can just be an idiot, but just because someone was shitty in the terminal doesn't mean they can't be a good merchant.

Also realize that the people above the merchants you're dealing with on the front lines, the sales reps for the companies who are finding buyers for the grain from the elevators, very rarely have grain or farming experience. They're marketing graduates who've gotten the job, not rural people who've been promoted up to head offices. In the business models for marketing, they don't seem to require a knowledge of grain or terminal processes in order to be merchants.

I appreciate your comments, but it sounds like
You’re not familiar with how places work other than the one you’re at. I’ve seen location merchants working on the driveway cause they have grain experience, they grade cars. But now, they’re hiring idiots who don’t know anything. To do hedging, I agree that you don’t need grain knowledge. But to do shipping, grading, talk to farmers, you better learn what you’re doing or not one of your customers will respect you.
I’ve dealt with a lot sales people who didn’t grow up on a farm but were willing to learn, and they were great reps. What I’m saying is the 4 terminals I’m talking about are hiring people who don’t know shit from brown paper.

[Blaithin]

I appreciate your comments, but it sounds like
You’re not familiar with how places work other than the one you’re at. I’ve seen location merchants working on the driveway cause they have grain experience, they grade cars. But now, they’re hiring idiots who don’t know anything. To do hedging, I agree that you don’t need grain knowledge. But to do shipping, grading, talk to farmers, you better learn what you’re doing or not one of your customers will respect you.
I’ve dealt with a lot sales people who didn’t grow up on a farm but were willing to learn, and they were great reps. What I’m saying is the 4 terminals I’m talking about are hiring people who don’t know shit from brown paper.

I've worked at more that one place, more than one company. They are all fairly separate between the office and the terminal. Some merchants were a bit more... interested? in terminal work than others, but still not much.

Smaller elevators are more likely to still have sales working in the terminal but the high throughput ones, not so much. It would make sense for sales to do a day or week every now and then in the grading room to brush up on stuff. It would also make sense to have terminal staff tag along with sales now and then to learn a bit about that side of the business. But while that gets talked about, it doesn't usually happen. Job positions are now specialized and full time on their own.

It's a throwback to still have a CSR that also has hands on grading. The most you can hope for is they can read the CGC guide and reference posters and translate why your grade is what it is.

Out of the dozen merchants I know I can think of one that should/could be able to offer a grade but he has no interest in doing so and would play dumb. Grading is not his job. Just like out of the dozens of terminal staff I know, none would be able to manage a sale or contract. Doesn't matter what company they work for, they're all at high input, high output facilities and are required to do one job only. It's a small circle, companies and staff know what other companies and staff are doing.

The hope farmers can have is that new staff that are hired, either in the terminal or for sales, are trained up well, by knowledgeable people, because honestly, even a farming background is only the most basic of help. If you can tell the difference between barley, wheat and canola you're ahead of the town kids sure, but it's rare to find someone that, even though they were raised on a grain farm, can distinguish between CWRS, CPSR and CWRW or can pick heated out of a cereal grain. That is more than a background skill, it takes training. Training takes time.

The biggest downfall I've seen recently is with so many new builds going up, the trained staff are predominantly going to these new builds, leaving the older builds high and dry. They have no option but to hire mostly inexperienced staff and they have little to nobody around to train these new, no experience, people.

None of this means don't go in the grading room and watch though. Do that.

[tubs]

What I do when a guy does not get treated fairly I put the company in the penalty box and don't deal with them for awhile and this can be over the littlest thing staff has to be freindly and treat you like a customer sometimes they forget that

[Bushpusher]

What I do when a guy does not get treated fairly I put the company in the penalty box and don't deal with them for awhile and this can be over the littlest thing staff has to be freindly and treat you like a customer sometimes they forget that

If I follow that rule I’d end up taking 2 terminals in my area off my list. Same company though. That’s the point I’m at, been burned too many times. If someone calls to buy my grain and can’t talk about what’s happening in the market and tries to feed me bs, why bother.

[tubs]

If I follow that rule I’d end up taking 2 terminals in my area off my list. Same company though. That’s the point I’m at, been burned too many times. If someone calls to buy my grain and can’t talk about what’s happening in the market and tries to feed me bs, why bother.

Then just deal with grain brokerages lots of those around too.

[walterm]

I sure agree that many of the CSR's at many of the elevators are green as grass. With time they many will do well but as in any business some are duds. We will sell regularly to several plants and there is only one or two with what I call a old time type of grain buyer. It is definitely on us as the farmer to make sure things are done right as these young people just don't realize the problem. Funny thing today is grade doesn't seem to matter anymore, its all on price. What is my grain worth net to me? Doesn't matter whether they call it #1 or #3, what is the net price? When some outfits use different grades and protein spreads for their base grades , I always have to ask what's my net price. I think a year like this those with uncontracted grain to sell will be far more in the drivers seat. I'm sure there are is going to be more times of price increases at certain elevators just to finish off a train. I think the "merchant" buying grain that are above the local CSR's for several elevators are going to earn their paycheck this year.

Your right to a point about what they call it not your issue for price. They can pay you what ever they want for what ever quality they need. That is why feed is sometimes priced higher than milling wheat. However do you think they don't care about quality? Otherwise why not just sell over the phone why do they always want to see a sample? Their customers sure want to know what they are buying for quality.

Grades are only a guarantee of minimum and maximum tolerances of disease, damage and FM in lot of grain so they can bin and blend to meet end users needs.