To say this past year was challenging would be an understatement. A wet spring and fall coupled with a dry summer, limited yields and made for a tough environment to navigate. Despite these conditions, your cooperative was able to produce a net savings of $365,627 from $105,883,646 in sales. This will allow your cooperative to return to the membership $175,000 in patronage of which 100% will be distributed in cash. This amounts to 1.5 cents per bushel on local grain sales and 1.0% on fuel purchases. In addition, I’m pleased to announce that the Luckey Farmers Board of Directors has approved redeeming patronage equity credits from 2005 and 2006 as well as Class A Preferred stock. The stock and equity redemptions will total approximately $151,000.
As we look into the horizon, the challenges we face will continue to pressure our industry such as declining commodity prices, environmental issues, technology complexities and foreign trade uncertainty. How can Luckey Farmers help you navigate these uncertainties? Those are the questions we ask as we make decisions today to help position our members for success in the future.
That success is reliant on how we can help you make better decisions and those decisions are based on the information that is available to us. Keeping track of all this information can be overwhelming and time consuming. Over the past four years, Luckey Farmers has made significant investments in facilities and software technologies to help you track the activities performed on your farm. Our software allows you complete access to your accounts to manage, or you can have Luckey Farmers track it for you. Being able to collect this information in one place will help simplify your records and allow us to help you make more informed decisions. Not only does this assist you in more informed decisions, it also helps maintain the records for compliance purposes. As you know, environmental pres-sures with the Lake Erie algae blooms will continue to persist, and additional regulations are just a matter of time.
As we celebrate our 100-year anniversary, we look to the past as we move into the future. The men and women who began our cooperative in 1919 had the foresight to see that working together allowed them to achieve more success together, than they ever would have standing alone. Farming has changed dramatically over these past 100 years and we have been privileged to be there for our members from horse and plow days to machinery and technologies that our founding members could only dream about. Through the years one thing has remained constant. Our commitment to service and our members. Without you, there would be no Luckey Farmers.
I want to thank the Board of Directors and our employees for their dedication and hard work. Thank you to our mem-bers and customers for choosing to do business with Luckey Farmers. It has been a pleasure to serve you these past 100 years and beyond.
Andy Swerlein
