For many farmers to stay profitable, grain storage is a must. Farmers generally have two options—a grain elevator or on-site grain bins. In our breakdown, we’ll explain how the return on investment of on-farm grain storage infrastructure practically pays for itself.
Market Flexibility
The primary value of grain storage is that it gives farmers much more flexibility in when to sell their bushels. The grain market is always in flux—one day, it can be soaring, and the next dropping like a lead balloon. When harvest time comes around, there’s obviously going to be more grain available and a higher supply than demand, so the price per bushel drops.
But with on-farm storage, farmers can bide their time and keep their bushels off the market until later in the year when grain becomes scarcer and the price per bushel rises. Adapting to this simple market flexibility can mean significantly greater profits for farmers and more than makes up for the initial investment in everything needed to establish on-farm grain storage.
No Storage Rental Fees
The other storage option for farmers who don’t have on-site grain bins is to pay to rent space at a grain elevator. A grain elevator is like a communal storage place where farmers can keep their grain in storage for a fee.
While the fee may not be much initially, these expenses can add up quickly. But with grain storage bins on-site, farmers can cut out those rental expenses entirely, which adds up to greater long-term value and savings.
Eliminate Delivery Inefficiencies
Another expense for farmers is the delivery cost associated with trucks transporting the grain from the field to the grain elevator. Come harvest time, grain elevators can have long lines of many farms depositing grains, causing hours of delays. Meanwhile, the nearest elevator is hours away for some farms, and simply transporting it costs too much in fuel and labor.
But with on-farm grain bins and receiving systems, the delivery of grain from the field to storage is much more efficient and affordable. On-site storage bins help cut labor costs and fuel fees—two expenses that can add to a lot of money harvest after harvest.
Now you see some of the ways that on-farm grain storage pays for itself—but there are even more. From a financial and practical standpoint, on-site grain bins are one of the best investments a farmer can make.
