Nation’s largest ag co-op cashes out lowest profit-share in years
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CHS, the nation's largest agricultural cooperative, will cash out the lowest profit share the co-op has seen since 2021 to owners next year.
The Inver Grove Heights-based co-op will disperse $120 million to owners in 2026, down from $600 million this year and $730 million in 2024.
While previous years were marked by strong crop prices, this year’s low profit share is a symptom of bigger issues in the ag economy.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports potential record crop yields this year. Meanwhile, there’s an ag trade deficit
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“So we've got this big supply and I don't know if you've heard, but we’ve got some trade issues going on right now,” said Edward Usset, a grain marketing economist at the University of Minnesota.
China, the largest buyer of American soybeans, hasn’t placed an order for the upcoming market year. In retaliation against Trump Administration tariffs, China is instead opting to buy ag products from South America.
“China is our number one export destination for soybeans,” Usset said. “So if soybean exports are that important to the demand side of the equation, and China is the most important factor in that export demand, their decision to go to South America is going to have a big impact on prices here.”
Another factor in CHS’s current situation is that the co-op also owns oil refineries across the country. And just like grain, they’ve been negatively impacted by a boost in U.S. and global energy production.
“The energy industry is experiencing compressed refinery margins at the same time that U.S. agriculture is seeing a weaker farm economy with a globally competitive marketplace for grains and oilseeds,” said president and CEO of CHS, Jay Debertin in a statement in January.
CHS will release its financial results for the current fiscal year in November.
