HORNICK, IOWA | It may have taken 15 months, but Hornick's Western Iowa Cooperative is back in action.
A fertilizer fire in a loader caused the blaze that gutted the grain merchandiser's agriculture building at 3330 Moville Blacktop on May 1, 2012.
Even though no one was injured in the fire, it did level the building, the facilities' general manager, Jim Cohrs, said.
Luckily, the building, which stored phosphorus-based fertilizer, was 90 percent empty due to the start of the growing season.
In addition, Cohrs said, the cooperative's insurance company allowed the business to rebuild.
"It turned out pretty well for us," he said as he sat inside the now fully operational ag building. "It could have been worse."
Despite a building process that cost $2.5 million and wasn't completed until October, area farmers were still able to store grain at Western Iowa Coop facilities located in nearby Mapleton and Blencoe, Iowa.
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"As long as the farmers are happy," Cohrs said, "I'm happy."
A 20-year veteran with the Hornick grain merchandiser, Cohrs has had at least two generations of farmers do business with him.
"When I started, the farmers were young and just starting their families," he recalled. "Now, the very same farmers are bringing in their sons whom I remembered as kids."
This is the nature of modern-day farming, Cohrs said.
"Farmers are getting older and some of the young guys are looking to get out of the business," he said. "Many will remain farmers, but I think everybody's aware of the shifting demographics."
Even so, farming remains big business for many.
"I don't think people are aware that Western Iowa Coop is a $10 million business," he noted. "That's a lot of money for a country grain elevator."
It's especially true for a grain elevator that employs as many as 110 people in the small Woodbury County town.
Which is why getting the Hornick location up and running again was so important.
Cohrs said there were "a few hiccups" along the way.
"We found out we were on a flood plain, which meant going back to the drawing board a couple of times," he said.
Other than that, it's been a race to get back in action.
Walking through the grain elevator -- which has nine separate bins and heated floors -- Cohrs said he can't wait until the building is filled with grain.
Despite the sluggish national economy, Cohrs said farming had been somewhat bullish until recently.
A few months before the growing season begins, Cohrs said he's keeping his fingers crossed for a solid year for farmers.
"In good times and in bad, farmers spend what they have," he noted. "There's never been a huge profit margin."
Yet he knows that farmers will be happy to have the Hornick facilities back in operation again.
"It took awhile," Cohrs said, smiling. "But it's great to have the place running again."
