SFG Update - Fall 2020

President & CEO

Chief Operating Officer

Financial Controller

Max Smith Email: max@sfgiowa.com

Sharon Smith Email: sharon@sfgiowa.com

Ashley Basset Email: ashleyb@sfgiowa.com

Grain Merchandiser

Fuel, IT, & Feed Manager

Agronomy Manager

Mark White Email: markw@sfgiowa.com

Kyle Smith Email: kyle@sfgiowa.com

Charles Smith Email: charless@sfgiowa.com

Kyle Smith- responsible for Knoxville City, Melcher-Dallas, and Columbia locations. Kyle is the SFG IT and Fuel Procurement Manager.

Knoxville Main Office

Pleasantville Location

Centerville Location

Albia Location

1650 Quebec St Knoxville, IA 50138

702 E. Jasper Pleasantville, IA 50228

1605 S. 24th St Centerville, IA 52544

805 Hwy 5 North Albia, IA 52531

Mark White- Senior Grain & Procurement Manager, Truck dispatcher, and manages the Knoxville grain facilities. Senior advisor to CEO.

Office: 641-828-8500 Toll-Free: 800-828-5005

Office: 515-848-5000 Toll-Free: 800-586-5005

Office: 641-856-2828 Toll-Free: 866-856-5303

Office: 641-932-2100 Toll-Free: 877-932-5005

Key Managers:

Knoxville City Location

Melcher-Dallas Location

Milo Location

Columbia Fuel Station

601 N. Sherman St Knoxville, IA 50138

126 2nd St SE Melcher-Dallas, IA 50163

101 1st St Milo, IA 50166

2441 Hwy 14 Columbia, IA 50057

Office: 641-842-5511

Office: 641-947-2000

Office: 641-942-6223

Cell: 641-218-4035

Mark Young- Senior Agronomy Manager Paul VanDriesten: Senior Shop Manager These 6 men are key decision makers for SFG. They work on the “front line” and report directly to the SFG President.

Max Smith President & CEO Change, Change, Change.

A year ago, we purchased 4 additional locations which basically doubled our office personnel. The facilities were smaller and very out dated. Part of the Smith family expertise is to take a facility and totally remodel it to best meet our standards. This has taken a lot of time and energy from my sons and the key managers at our main office. I have been fortunate to have my sons and our employees working diligently together to complete these projects. We have worked on every facility – some more than others.

New titles (Divisional Mangers) and duties have been assigned to the following employees: Jason Smith- responsible for Albia & Centerville locations and assists with special operational tasks at other locations. Jason manages Centerville and Beau Smith, his son, manages Albia.

Charles Smith- responsible for Milo & Pleasantville locations and retained the position of SFG Agronomy Operations Manger based at the Knoxville main office.

The Smith family has demonstrated and is dedicated to improving all our businesses and providing the best service available to farmers in our trade area. Most of our locations currently have high speed unloading facilities or will be upgraded in the next 1-2 years. We have invested heavily in our feed and agronomy departments and we are on a path to double or triple the growth in years ahead. Technology in our agronomy department is a major investment at SFG. We have the best programs to offer in the Midwest and will continue to develop programs to increase profitability on every acre you farm.

Our goal is to provide you with the best product and service so we “earn” your existing and future business. Every SFG salesman is challenged to “raise the bar” in your farming operation. Your SFG salesman will be calling to schedule an appointment. Please take the time to set up an appointment, whether it is on the farm maintaining social distance or with a phone call so we can assist in your farming needs.

SFG practices safety every day, especially with the Covid-19 issues Please express your thoughts to maintain your safety as well as our SFG salesman regarding this terrible virus.

Thank you for your past and future business, Max Smith President of SFG

SFG Update

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Jason Smith Centerville/Albia Division Manager Harvest seems to be upon us a little earlier this year and here at Albia and Centerville, we are ready. Here are a few of the update and improvements we have made to the facilities this past year.

At Albia the most noticeable improvement is to the area around the trucks scale. The bright yellow safety railing really sticks out. We did this to make it safer for you when walking to and from your vehicle and also direct the flow of traffic. We have reworked areas of the driveway yet again. This summer

Charles Smith Pleasantville/Milo Division Manager Grain is starting to roll in and fall fertilizer is starting to get applied.

We had a pretty good summer to get some projects done.

At Pleasantville we put in a new salt shed. It is a 70 X 112 hoop building and holds 3000 ton. We had to prep the site and set 120 blocks for the building to sit on. This took some time to get the blocks at the correct height. The shed is about 75% full and should be full sometime this month, just in time for the weather to change!

We purchased a used front loader. In the past we had to run the salt through an auger. Now we can reach over the side of a dump truck to load salt, saving time and help in stacking salt in the shed.

At Milo we put in a new Nh3 loading plant, rebuilt the loading dock and fill stations, and upgraded the 2” pump to a 3” pump, increasing tank filling time by 50%. We also went from a 2station dock to a 4-station dock. We used to be able to fill 2 single tanks at once or 1 double. Now we can fill 4 singles or 2

we installed some surface drains in front of the Quonsets. This will greatly improve the area where the empty trucks travel after they are unloaded. As far the elevator itself goes we had to have the upper part of the elevator spouting re-lined. I could not begin to calculate on how many bushels have passed through them, but they were completely wore out! Other than that, we just had to do some general maintenance and now everything’s all ready to go.

At Centerville there have been some employee changes. The location manager Brian Bohlen has left to pursue other opportunities, I will be filling in as Manager for the foreseeable future. As most of you know there will be a new man at the grain dump this year. His name is Nick Garcia. Nick joined our team at the end of last year and will be doing his best to fill the shoes of Mark Bolin who retired at the end of 2019. As far as the facilities go there have been no major changes just normal maintenance and repairs. Everything should be ready to go as we’re ready to meet your harvest needs.

doubles. The dock itself went from a 5 x 6 dock to an 8 x 32.

This means that the water safety tank and the N-serve shuttle can be on the dock, allowing us to put n-serve in while the tank is at the dock. In the past we had to fill the tank with Nh3 and then move the tank over by the shop where the shuttle was. This improvement should cut our time in half and make it safer for the person doing the work too.

We also fixed up the shop and storage shed by replacing some doors and fixing holes in the wall, making the shed more secure allowing us to store feed there. The last big improvement was making the driveway drain behind the shop. We put a tile line in from behind the shop to the street. The water back there had nowhere to go.

Scott Goetz is the new manager at our Milo location. Scott is from Liberty Center and brings a wealth of feed knowledge to our business. Scott’s main focus is taking care of your feed needs. Feel free to call him with any questions.

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SFG Update

Kyle Smith Melcher-Dallas, Columbia, Knoxville (City) Division Manager

Columbia – We finished tearing out what was left of the old chemical plant and regraded the property for better water management.

Melcher – Dallas – One of the biggest changes you’ll notice is that we installed a new 12’x70’ grain scale along with a It’s been a busy past few months with several changes refurbished Apollo grain probe. All of the overhead electrical wires/phone lines have been relocated at our locations. Below is a underground to allow for plenty of overhead clearance rough overview of some of throughout the entire facility. The old NH3 dock has been the more noticeable improvements we’ve made. replaced with a 34’x8’ dock with two fill stations and overhead lighting. We replaced the auger in our receiving Knoxville City – We tore out pit to speed up unload times. The city of Melcher dug out the abandoned Rock Island track on the north end of our property the ditches along 2nd Street and replaced the culverts on along with the fertilizer shed. We graded the northwest corner of our two primary entrances which were mostly sediment the property to improve drainage. Les Vanderlinden and Karen filled and partially crushed in areas. Lastly we tore out what Stansberry both recently retired and Ryan Martin moved from our remained of the Coops corn pile receiving pit and Knoxville office to assume Les’s role as Location Manager. foundations on the south end of the property.

Beau Smith

up to 6 different batches at a time, allowing us to make more deliveries with fewer stops to the mill.

SFG Feed / Fall is here and harvest is in full swing. This month our foAlbia Location Manager cus has moved to bag mineral and mineral tubs. We are Hi, my name is Beau Smith. I am the Nutritional and Procurement Manager in Albia. I oversee the operations, sales, and purchases of our feed products. I have several years experience helping raise custom cattle.

We have added more people to our SFG feed team, both on the production and sales side. Scott Goetz has recently taken the job as Milo location manager. Scott specializes in feed sales and has years of experience in the Warren County area. Scott and I work closely together to meet our customer needs. We have doubled our specialty bagged feed sales in the past two years. I am in the mill on a regular basis to oversee quality control and product inventory.

Sales have been increasing month by month. Our feed team receives training on new products to assure we use the best product available for your livestock. Our new locations have allowed us to meet new customers and offer our great service to them- our new feed truck could not have came at a better time! We can now haul

fully stocked to meet your needs through this fall and into winter. We are also offering mineral contracts. We are offering a 10% discount on Kent Framework 365 Mineral on the purchase of 10 bags or more in addition to a $24/ton discount on our mineral tubs until October 30th. Come into one of our locations for more information on this great deal.

SFG Update

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Mark White SFG Grain Merchandiser The grain markets have been in an uptrend the past 2 months leading into harvest. Strong export demand for both corn and beans has been a major driver. Our prices are the best in the world right now and we have an ample supply of corn and beans ready to ship. China has been the main purchaser recently as South America is about out of beans until they start seeing new crop in early March. Domestic usage has been strong as our livestock numbers continue to be large. Packer capacities are back to normal after being disrupted by the Covid Pandemic.

Ethanol demand is still struggling some as people are not driving as much as normal. The government announced last month they would start allowing E15 to be sold thru current E10 pumps. It is too early to tell how many pumps will be converted. It would be a nice shot in the arm if at least 30 percent did. Corn usage has not taken the full reduction due to less ethanol production. A gallon of ethanol produces 17

Rob Matherly SFG Marketing Manager We have some exciting news about a new way that we at SFG are reaching out to help you increase your yield and profitability. We’re proud to announce our new podcast, SFG Top Performance. Bi-weekly on Mondays we post a 15-minute agronomy video that can be delivered directly to your smartphone, tablet, or PC and viewed at your convenience.

Coming up in October we will be adding a second edition of SFG Top Performance, focused on grain marketing and ani-

pounds of DDGs. Since there has been less DDGs available livestock feeders are using more corn and bean meal in their rations. Hopefully, the pandemic will be brought under control in the very near future and we will start to see things return to normal. Harvest started in our area in mid- September. We are not seeing the record yields we thought we had the first of August.

However, we are seeing respectful yields. Early beans were maybe 5 to 10 bushels below expectations as they missed having any late season rain. Fuller season beans may have had a chance to use the early September rain and could easily be better. Corn yields have been variable with soil type and fertility playing a big part. The years you have plenty of rain you can raise decent corn just about anywhere. Years like 2020 remind you that water is still the most important nutrient for high corn yields. An inch of rain made a huge difference in some fields this year. As always all the SFG elevators are ready to accept your grain. We will work the hours needed to get your crop under roof. We offer all the grain services you may need including custom corn drying if you have storage at home but need help getting the crop dried. Do not hesitate to call us for marketing help. We may not have all the answers, but we do have some ideas that are worth looking at.

mal nutrition. Beau Smith, Mark White, and Kent Watson will deliver a video every Monday opposite our Agronomy podcast, featuring the expert advice you’ve come to expect from SFG. Keep your eyes on SFGIowa.com in the coming weeks for updates on these productions. You can also subscribe on YouTube, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and sign up for email notifications of the latest episodes. Our teams of agronomy and animal nutrition professionals will have expert advice to help you make the right decisions in these tough times.

We’re glad to take any questions or comments as well!

You can use our contact page to leave us any suggestions on what you’d like to hear us discuss.

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SFG Update

Mark Young Senior SFG Agronomy Manager You have prepared your combines for fall harvest season, which means the fall soil sampling season will be here soon.

Higher than average input cost and lower projected commodity prices are just two factors that support the benefits of fall soil testing. Properly identifying nutrient levels with a soil sample can help you make the best management decisions available. Soil testing is the single most important guide to the profitable use of fertilizer and lime.

The purpose of soil testing is to identify the soil fertility that the plants or crops, in a given area will experience. The most difficult step in soil testing is accurately representing the desired area of soil. A laboratory cannot improve the accuracy of a sample that does not represent the area. In most soils, it takes more than one year to make significant changes to the soil test levels. As the soil improves with better fertility programs presented by your SFG agronomist, subsequent crops or plant growth should show increasing rates of improvement.

Grid soil sampling is the most preferred method of intensively sampling your field, typically obtaining a sample for every 2.5 acres. This method of sampling is typically used when you use variable rate technology to apply fertilizers or lime. Grid sampling is most justified on high value and high yielding soils, particularly when you anticipate significant variation in soil test levels including low testing area within a field. It can also be useful the first time you sample the soil in a field with an unknown history.

With the approach of the fall fertilizer season, it is time to decide whether maintenance or build approach is the most appropriate method of crop nutrient application. Obviously, if the soils are already high, the maintenance approach to fertility is ideal. There is a high penalty for having low soil fertility, and the penalty will get only greater as yield potential increases. We cannot lose ground now, contact your SFG agronomist and get your fall program prepared.

SFG agronomists will show you that the most profitable fertilizer rates are based on crop response, fertilizer costs and commodity prices.

We want to help you understand that the optimum rate is where the yield increase just pays for the last pound of nutrient. This is usually just below the maximum yield level, but the relationship changes with the price of fertilizer and commodity prices.

High yields require high fertility. Your goal should be to build your soils to a high enough fertility level so that you can reach your maximum yield potential for any given crop rotation and weather condi-

tion. High soil fertility supports yields in good years, it also provides yields stability in less than ideal years.

High levels of production require more attention be given liming programs because nutrients are removed from the soil through crop removal or because they leach. While pH is the master variable to determine the acidity of soil, most labs determine the lime requirement separately. The reactive capability of a particular sample varies from soil to soil and even within a field.

Because lime worked into soil reacts faster, apply it prior to any fall tillage. Lime in conservation tillage systems requires careful attention, especially if fertilizers have been applied to the surface for several growing seasons. SFG, universities, and some producers facing enormous lime bills in recent years have found variable rate application based on intensive soil sampling and mapping is effective in correcting acidity while controlling cost.

Good hybrids are very important in planning for next year.

Therefore, you should first see our hybrids that demonstrate consistent high yield performance across multiple environments in SFG’s and other’s research plots. Consistent performance across multiple sites is important because multiple sites represent possible weather patterns your farm may experience in the future. Consult closely with your SFG agronomist and our R7 program to check out the latest corn hybrid performance results from nonbiased sources.

Once your SFG agronomist has helped you identify otherwise good yielding hybrids, then further filter among that group for hybrid characteristics important for your corn cropping system.

Such characteristics include hybrid traits for disease resistance, stalk strength, stalk and root health, seedling vigor, and overall stress tolerance.

SFG agronomists won’t promise you the world. We will promise you an honest and insightful approach to maximizing your soybean yield potential. SFG promotes the use of proven technologies to match the right soybean genetics and traits to your field’s conditions. Plus, SFG agronomists choose seed varieties are selected for disease tolerance that helps protect the soybean plant throughout all stages of growth. We know this is the best way to help you achieve optimal return on your seed and crop inputs.

Assisting current and future customers, of SFG, with preparation and implementation of agronomy plans that help maximize ROI for our customers is very important for our agronomy staff.

Leading the agronomy department sales staff is Jason Jenson.

Jason is very good in directing his staff, yet he has great insight in helping make the correct agronomy decision for his customers.

Managing the seed department for SFG is Derrick Hoodjer. Derrick has a wonderful understanding of how a seed department runs.