Soybean 2025 by Newspaper

Pat Groth, DSM, Harlan, IA 712-830-0258

Terpstra, DSM, Sioux Falls, SD 319-481-8514 Trevor Gress, Denison, IA 712-269-0705 Joel Davidson Internet sales 319-461-8419

Miller Hybrids office 319-325-6158

Karl Fehr, Whittemore, IA 712-358-2184

Building for the future Lightner: Platinum Crush has successful first year

By KRISTIN

DANLEY GREINER Farm News writer

ALTA — Platinum Crush leaders have spent the past year or so reflecting on their successes and challenges that have pushed the soybean crushing facility to become highly successful.

Located in Buena Vista County near Alta, the plant was up and running in early May 2024. It crushes approximately 115,000 bushels of soybeans daily, which yields upwards of 875,000 tons of soybean meal per year (2,500 tons per day), 465 million pounds of crude soybean oil per year (650 tons per day), and 80,000 tons of pelleted soybean hulls per year (230 tons per day).

The soybean meal and soy hulls, which contain highly digestible fiber, will be used in animal nutrition, while the soybean oil can be used for a variety of applications, including human nutrition and the rapidly expanding, renewable diesel bioenergy segment.

“If we reflect on the past 12 months, since the last harvest, we have reached and exceeded our nameplate capacity, so we’re running above 100 percent of the designated capacity. We’re doing that consistently in May, June, July and August, and we’ve seen improvements in increased plant through-puts,” said Platinum Crush CEO Erik

Lightner. “Although we’ve been crushing an average of 115,000 bushels, we peaked at about 121,000 bushels per day. We’ve had a very successful first full year.”

Those beans also are sold by farmers in the area, which supports the local economy. In fact, they come from around a 70-mile radius.

“Last year, we had multiple

days where we saw more than 500 truck deliveries with semi trucks, and even tractors and carts or pickups and carts,” Lightner said. “We will take any and all fashion of how beans come to us. We have a system that manages our weights and grades, and that can track when the trucks come to the site and leave, which is posted on our website, and we can send out

texts to registered producers about the wait times.”

The plant will operate seven days a week, with weekend hours that began Sept. 13 and that will run through the end of harvest.

“We’ll typically be running at least 12 if not 14 hours a day. Our average time from the

See PLATINUM, Page 6C

-Photo courtesy of Platinum Crush

LOCATED NEAR ALTA in Buena Vista County, Platinum Crush recently completed its first full year of operaion after opening in early May 2024. It crushes approximately 115,000 bushels of soybeans daily, which yields upwards of 875,000 tons of soybean meal per year, 465 million pounds of crude soybean oil per year, and 80,000 tons of pelleted soybean hulls per year.

“Although we’ve been crushing an average of 115,000 bushels, we peaked at about 121,000 bushels per day. We’ve had a very successful first full year.”

ERIK LIGHTNER

CEO,

Platinum Crush

Continued from Page 4C

inbound probe station to the outbound scale was 10 minutes and 20 seconds.” Lightner said. “We have a 60,000-bushel unloading capacity, so we’ll have multiple receive pits running.”

Platinum Crush also was built adjacent to the CN Railway, which services the facility. Unloading 60,000 bushels per hour is more than double the receiving and elevation of the average industry facility. With this speed, a producer will likely only be at the crushing plant for eight to 10 minutes, Lightner said.

“We participate in the global supply chain and in our first year, we probably exported half the soybean meal outside the U.S. with the other half consumed domestically. Of that half consumed domestically, we’ve seen that increase. Our oil first half of 2025 was almost

PLATINUM CRUSH was built next to the CN Railway, which services the facility. Unloading 60,000 bushels per hour is more than double the receiving and elevation of the

-Photo courtesy of Platinum Crush

primarily all export, and that was just because of the uncertainty or lack of guidance in U.S. biofuels policy,” Lightner said. “In mid or late April, we’d been seeing 100 percent domestic and 90-plus percent going into biofuels for us. Pelts and fiber products — probably 50 percent stays here in our regional area and 50 percent goes to Texas, Oklahoma, California, wherever the cattle are.”

If producers see a binbusting harvest, like many experts are anticipating, the plant will be able to handle it.

“We have about 5 million bushels worth of storage capacity, and if the harvest window is 20 to 25 days, we will probably be able to buy 2.5 to 4 million (bushels) to build inventory, plus 2 million to crush,” Lightner said. “We expect this year to receive 5.5 to 6 million bushels during the harvest period. We’re looking at a good-sized soybean crop.”

Before the harvest got into full swing, the plant hosted a farmer-producer appreciation day Sept. 10. The first year, the company welcomed nearly 400 guests to the facility, where officials answered questions and showed them around.

“We plan to be here for many, many decades,” Lightner said. “We are very approachable and want to do business with good people, build relationships and get to know everyone.”

“We plan to be here for many, many decades. We are very approachable and want to do business with good people, build relationships and get to know everyone.”

ERIK LIGHTNER CEO, Platinum Crush

A PLATINUM CRUSH WORKER scoops soybeans in one of the facility's storage facilities. If producers see a bin-busting harvest, like many experts are anticipating, the plant will be able to handle it. “We have about 5 million bushels worth of storage capacity, and if the harvest window is 20 to 25 days, we will probably be able to buy 2.5 to 4 million (bushels) to build inventory, plus 2 million to crush,” said CEO Erik Lightner said.

-Photo courtesy of Platinum Crush

Making the most of Checkoff dollars

Soy research gets a boost at Iowa State University

By LORI BERGLUND Farm News writer

AMES — There’s a line from the FFA Creed that seems to sum up well the mission of the Iowa Soybean Research Center (ISRC) at Iowa State University: “Better days through better ways.” That’s what generations of young FFA’ers have stood up and pledged themselves to for decades now.

The ISRC is doing much the same.

Researchers and scientists at the Research Center are looking every day for better ways to grow soybeans. The goal is to assist farmers in the quest to improve productivity — and thus profitability — on their soybean acres.

“Our role is to find ways to grow soybeans better,” said Greg Tylka, founding director of the ISRC. “We focus on production, whether it be pest control, soil fertility, weed control, breeding new varieties, and also some basic research on the genetics of soybeans that may lead to more pest-resistant varieties.

Founded on July 1, 2014, the Iowa Soybean Research Center came about as a way to put greater funding together from more diverse sources, and not just depend on checkoff dollars from farmers.

“Our mission is to leverage soybean checkoff investments

-Photo courtesy of the Iowa Soybean Research Center

THE IOWA SOYBEAN RESEARCH CENTER LEADERSHIP TEAM INCLUDES, from left: founding Director Greg Tylka, incoming codirectors Mark Licht and Steve Whitham, along with Joe McClure of the Iowa Soybean Association, who serves as Industry Advisory Council chairperson. See ISRC, Page 9C

by Iowa farmers in research here at Iowa State with industry funds,” Tylka said.

It’s a matter of getting more skin in the game, as more dollars enhance the research possibilities and different avenues that may be explored.

“The Iowa Soybean Association funds a lot of research here at Iowa State through a regular, annual process,” Tylka said. “The Center was created to take some of those checkoff dollars and make them go farther by having industry become official partners, contribute finances, and double the value of the money that is available to fund more research at Iowa State — and it wouldn’t be paid all by farmer money, but also by industry money.”

Tylka has led the Research Center as director since its beginning more than a decade ago. He is now preparing to hand off the reins to Mark Licht and Steve Whitham as co-directors.

“I’ve been a faculty member since 1990, and in 2014 I added the Center directorship to my plate,” Tylka said. “Now we have two, younger, more energetic faculty members who will be co-directors. At the moment, we are overlapping in leadership for this calendar year. They will be fully in charge come January 1.”

This will allow Tylka to move back to faculty work full-time, focusing on research and Extension work. He also lectures from time to time on behalf of the teaching faculty.

In its first decade, the Iowa Soybean Research Center has been able to enhance research, giving farmers more for their money in checkoff dollars.

“Since we started, we have funded 25 different research projects that were led by 17 different scientists, and it totaled $3.3 million dollars,” Tylka said. “Those funds have come about half and half; half from the Iowa Soybean Association and checkoff dollars, and half from industry.”

The need for better soybeans and increased productivity is driven

by potential new markets that could drastically drive up demand for the humble soybean. Renewable aviation fuel (RAF) is just one such market that has captured the attention of industry leaders.

Airlines, in particular, are in great need of reducing their carbon footprint. RAF, similar but with a different chemistry from biodiesel, is viewed as a clean energy product that could soon be part of the answer.

“RAF is a more sustainable, more environmentally benign alternative,” Tylka said. “If it’s widely adopted, it’s going to take up a lot more of the market share for soybeans, and we want to be able to take advantage of that.”

Better ways to grow soybeans may be the focus, but the ISRC is also forwardlooking in terms of building interest in the important commodity.

“We do lots of other things, like hosting SoyFest on campus to educate our undergraduates as to how important soybeans are to everyday life,” Tylka said.

That education doesn’t stop with the undergraduate, either.

“We take university people off campus into the countryside to visit farms and businesses, and these are just some of the examples of our outreach,” he added.

With so many modern uses for soybeans, it’s good to also remember that soybeans are still a great source of nutrition for a hungry world,

“We do a meal packaging event every year,” Tylka said. “The organization that we work with uses soybean protein in the meals that it packages. Every year, we package 38,000 meals that are sent to places in need.”

If there’s a soybean story to be told, the Iowa Soybean Research Center is working to tell that story.

“We want to work toward coordinating everything soybean related at Iowa State University,” Tylka concluded.

“Our role is to find ways to grow soybeans better. We focus on production, whether it be pest control, soil fertility, weed control, breeding new varieties, and also some basic research on the genetics of soybeans that may lead to more pest-resistant varieties.

GREG TYLKA Founding director, Iowa Soybean Research Center

One way the Iowa Soybean Research Center works to build interest in soybeans is through events like SoyFest, which is held on the Iowa State University campus in an effort to educate undergraduates about how important soybeans are to daily life.

-Photo Courtesy of the Iowa Soybean Research Center

Soybean market outlook

Hart: Soybeans should produce

a ‘good-sized crop’ in spite of late-hitting diseases

By KRISTIN

DANLEY GREINER

Farm News writer

Combines were rolling in pockets of Iowa the first of September, harvesting primarily early varieties of corn. Meanwhile, soybean pod setting neared 98 percent as of Sept. 7, meaning farmers have been eyeing that crop to harvest soon.

Chad Hart, economist with Iowa State University Extension, said everyone’s anticipating record-breaking yields for both corn and soybeans, but there’s also been a fair amount of lastminute disease pressure that could impact those yields.

“These late-hitting diseases — they tend to shave some off the yields, so I do expect yields to come down for corn and soybeans, but we’re still looking at a pretty good crop,” Hart said. “If we hit somewhere in the 50 to 52 bushel range, we’re still looking at a fairly good-sized crop, somewhere north of 4 billion bushels. That also means we’ll have plenty of supply.”

However, ending stocks have been fairly tight these past couple of years, so if there’s a drop in production, that could create some positive movement for the soybean market.

“When you look at the demand side of the equation, exports aren’t necessarily strong right now. We’re seeing very good usage on the biofuels side

and see fairly strong exports for soybean meal and soybean oil. So while we’re not moving the beans through the export market, we are moving the product to the export market,” Hart said. “The hard part is that someone needs a shorter soybean crop.”

Crop conditions throughout the growing season have been favorable for corn and soybeans both, with a considerable amount of growing degree days before pollination. But with disease pressure emerging at the end of the finish line, southern rust has emerged as a problem in corn and sudden death syndrome in beans, Hart noted.

“We’re watching the quality of the crop as it comes out of the fields,” Hart said. “We don’t tend to store soybeans, as they’re harder to store.”

Storage will be a concern for corn and fairly tight, but soybeans should be fine, Hart said.

“The problem is that we share that

storage with corn, and when corn is looking like a bin buster, that could strain storage,” Hart said. “But if you’ve never stored soybeans before this year, I wouldn’t recommend starting this year. You don’t want to learn on the fly.”

Hart’s advice for farmers?

Sit tight.

“Historically, this is a period of time, right before harvest, where we usually see our worst prices. I wouldn’t be making a move unless I absolutely positively have to. But you do want to be on the lookout for those bids in December or January. If they’re attractive enough, you’ll want to make a move. If there’s a good basis, lock that in for a forward delivery,” Hart said. “Wait for the seasonal pattern holds. We’re seeing a low now, and a month from now, we should see a recovery from this. Wait and see if two, three, four or

“WE’RE WATCHING THE QUALITY OF THE CROP as it comes out of the fields,” said Chad Hart, economist with ISU Extension. “We don’t tend to store soybeans, as they’re harder to store.”

Market

Continued from Page 13C

more months from now, you can lock down better prices.”

Grant Kimberley, Iowa Soybean Association director of market development and executive director of the Iowa Biodiesel Board, said the lack of a trade deal with China lends to the uncertainty in the soybean market.

“From a soybean perspective, it really is a big deal what China ends up doing. China has 20 percent net retaliatory tariffs on U.S. soybeans in retaliation for the fentanyl tariffs and steel and aluminum,” Kimberley said. “So they’d be paying 20 percent additional cost for U.S. beans vs. what they could pay for South American soybeans.”

Also a farmer, Kimberley said that, as of early September, China had yet to purchase any new crop soybeans from the U.S.

“That’s highly unusual. They usually start making new crop purchases in the summer. Buyers in general purchase ahead of time, so that’s a concern,” Kimberley said. “I think there’s a little bit of a cloud hanging over the soybean market that’s been there since Liberation

“These late-hitting diseases — they tend to shave some off the yields, so I do expect yields to come down for corn and soybeans, but we’re still looking at a pretty good crop.”

CHAD HART Economist, ISU Extension

Day and causing uncertainty.”

Liberation Day refers to April 2, when President Donald Trump announced a broad package of import duties.

U.S. soybean exports to China were already down last year, as were old crop year overall soybean exports and soy meal, but to add to that, Kimberley said, Brazil logged a record crop year and then the net tariff was put in place.

Kimberley was part of a delegation that traveled to Washington, D.C., a few weeks ago with hundreds of buyers from around the world in attendance. Some of the Chinese buyers said that their hands are tied, Kimberley said, even though they’d like to purchase from the U.S.

“But they can’t until a resolution to the situation is reached. It comes down to two people — the president of our

country and their country — making a deal,” Kimberley said. “The global soybean market in North America and the U.S. tends to have an export window. Ours is now through February where the majority of exports occur. We’ve had success in Egypt, Bangladesh, Columbia and Mexico. It’s just hard to offset what China bought.

“But if we get a trade deal done in the near future while we’re still in harvest and the export window is open, that’d be positive for the marketplace. But we’ll have to wait and see,” he said. “Between now and the end of the year, it’s going to be a more challenging situation for various reasons. But the geopolitical things are really outside of our control.” Kimberley said he, an ISA staffer and another farm leader planned to travel with a delegation to South Korea and Japan where they hope to build additional market share.

“We’re hoping to encourage buyers in other countries to increase their purchases,” he said. “There will be other trade missions and delegations heading overseas the next several months.”

Central Iowa Agronomy and Supply

Marv Mortensen: 515-370-3381 • marv@highyieldbeans.com Bob Streit: 515-709-0143 • bastreit@gmail.com

Making connections

Iowa

farmers meet with diverse global customers at Soy Connext 2025

By ERIN WORRELL U.S. Soybean Export Council

The U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC) brings U.S. soy buyers, sellers, growers and visionaries together every year for the premier global industry event: Soy Connext. Against a backdrop of changing trade dynamics and increasing global demand for reliable, high-quality soy protein and oil, the 2025 event gathered more than 700 attendees from 59 countries in Washington, D.C., Aug. 20 to 22, with invaluable support from an Iowa Soybean Association sponsorship.

U.S. soy is America’s top agricultural export, contributing $31.2 billion to the U.S. economy in the 2023-24 marketing year and traded in more than 80 countries. Fueled by rising global demand for soybean meal to support the expansion of global livestock, aquaculture and poultry production, USDA projects a 4.3% year-over-year increase in global soybean demand in the 2024-25 market year, reaching 346.2 million metric tons.

“Iowa exports about 50% of our soybeans, and because I farm close to

the Mississippi, most of my soybeans go overseas,” said Tom Adam, presidentelect of the Iowa Soybean Association who farms near Harper in Keokuk County and attended Soy Connext.

“It’s important to be face-to-face with customers. It’s good for all of us to know who we are dealing with.”

The Soy Connext agenda featured expert talks, panel discussions focused on sustainability, plant-based protein trends, supply chain insights and global market dynamics. In addition, the Trade Team Invitational connected 315 key buyers and 43 exporter companies to strengthen trade relationships and explore market opportu ities.

U.S. soy customers and exporters value the insights gained during Soy Connext sessions. But opportunities to connect with others in the industry really make the event shine. Attendees got a real-time crop update from a farmer panel during the program. Plus, the “Ask a Farmer” lounge made it easy for customers to meet face-to-face with U.S. soy farmers.

“Soy Connext is a great place to

Iowa

Connext

Continued from Page 17C

connect with buyers who want to hear our story and learn how we grow soybeans sustainably,” Adam said. “They ask lots of details about cover crops, the technology we use, how we take care of the environment and similar topics.”

In addition to time in Washington, D.C., many international attendees participated in trade team tours before or after the conference. The visits highlighted the U.S. soybean industry’s transparency and readiness to meet global demand, giving international buyers a firsthand look at the sustainable practices, innovation and stewardship that are core to the U.S. soy value proposition.

Trade teams with participants from Bangladesh, China and India explored Iowa. They visited farms, cooperatives, supply chain partners, the Iowa State Fair and more.

Iowa Soybean Association support is integral to the Soy Connext program and bringing the most important customers to the U.S.

“Our group of Iowa farmers met with the China delegation four times over the course of Soy Connext,” Adam said. “They are willing to buy U.S. soy if the logistics can be worked out. I learned a lot about trade issues, but I also learned that U.S. soy could gain new customers that lose out as Brazil focuses on China.”

Iowa farmers also will see a return on this investment as USSEC emphasizes the consistency, reliability, quality and sustainability of U.S. soy. As demand for soy foods and soy products grows in emerging, expanding and established markets, the industry is focused on a strategy that builds on U.S. soy’s reputation in the global marketplace.