Smith Fertilizer and Grain buys and stores grain at 7 locations in south central Iowa. Over the years SFG has upgraded our facilities to provide fast unloads that get customer trucks headed back to the field without delay. We have begun this process at the 3 facilities we purchased in 2019 and customers will see improvements as time goes by. We have increased our dryer capacities over the years so we can handle an influx of wet corn when it comes without reducing our receiving hours. We offer competitive storage rates including grain bank for those with livestock that take processed grain back out. With over 5.3 million bushels of storage under roof we never intend to put the “full” sign up. SFG offers on farm grain pickup utilizing our modern fleet of trucks and our experienced drivers. We also offer auger and grain vac services to load SFG trucks.
By Mark White Last week the corn and bean markets seemed quiet and yet both ended the week with good gains. December corn was 12 cents higher for the week....
By Mark White The USDA released their November WASDE report last Tuesday. Normally this report is a non-mover as it sits between the September report heading...
By Mark White The grain markets had another positive week as harvest rapidly winds down. We have rarely seen a harvest rally like this year’s without...
By Mark White We have had a tremendous run up in both corn and bean prices since harvest started. It was just a matter of time before we saw a setback like we...
As part of the local farming community, we understand the challenges grain producers face when it comes to storing, delivering and marketing your crop every year. Our grain marketing team is widely recognized for its knowledge and market expertise. Our head of grain trading, Mark White, provides regular weekly commentary on ever-changing grain market conditions. SFG grain storage and handling services include:
We listen to our customers to understand what services they need us to fufill in order to keep them moving forward. SFG is proud to partner with our customers in their grain operations and currently offer the following services:
• High Speed Receiving • Extended Harvest Hours • Daily Grain Bids • Marketing Contracts - Including Deferred Pay Contracts • Competitive Grain Storage Rates • Custom Corn Drying • On-Farm Pick Up with Auger & Vac Services • Grain Bank Storage for Livestock Owners
Mark White has been involved in agriculture his entire life. He was born and raised on a farm in Lucas County. He began farming right out of high school and farmed full time for 20 years until he took a sales job for the Chariton Farmers Coop. In 2005 he came to work for Smith Fertilizer and Grain as an agronomist. 2 years later he was moved into the home office and began working in administration. This included managing the Knoxville location and being the primary truck dispatcher. A year later he also became the grain merchandiser for SFG. Mark attends annual marketing seminars and reads several daily grain articles to keep informed on the grain markets. He enjoys the opportunity to work with our many grain customers. He continues to farm part time which allows him to experience the same ups and downs that our customers feel. Mark and his wife Rhonda have 2 grown children and 2 grandchildren.
Eric Stewart was born and raised in Oskaloosa Iowa. He graduated with a bachelor degree in accounting from the University of Iowa in December of 1997. Eric has been involved in some sort of accounting for 21 years. He moved out to Seattle WA in 1998 where he met his wife Teresa. They moved back to Iowa in 2012 to raise their daughter. Eric started working at Smith Fertilizer and Grain in January 2013 as the Senior Grain Accountant. He likes to spend his time outside and with his family.
Kristin started working for SFG in 2013 in front counter sales, later progressing to the Office Coordinator position in Knoxville. Her favorite time of the year is harvest, working with grain customers to best help them with extended hours and to grow the grain business. Kristin grew up in Knoxville, IA. She enjoyed playing volleyball throughout high school as well as playing for William Penn College. In 2018, she joined the Smith family, marrying Kyle Smith. They have 4 children ranging in age from 11 years to a 1 year old. They enjoy getting them into as many sports as possible as well as taking their annual trips to Florida.
Jamie grew up in Knoxville and attended AIB College of Business. She graduated in 2005 with a degree in accounting and returned to the area. Jamie enjoys spending time with family and friends.
Sharon grew up in the surrounding area and graduated from Indian Hills Community College with an AA degree. She has worked at the Centerville elevator for 24 years. Sharon enjoys spending time with her family and reading a good book.
Kelly Harvey has been involved in the agriculture community her entire life. Kelly grew up on a farm in Jefferson Iowa along with her three siblings. Kelly was very active in showing pigs and raising show pigs alongside with her father and siblings, and was also very active in sports, FFA, and competitive dance. Kelly graduated from high school in 2013, and Attended Des Moines Area Community College, majoring in Ag Business. After College Kelly started at Iowa Select farms and continued to work there until May 2019 when she was hired on at Smith Fertilizer and Grain. Kelly and her husband Austin have two daughters, Jordyn and Bexley. They spend much of summer, fall, and spring going to rodeos and spending time as a family in the practice pen.
Holly joined SFG in 2019 as the Office Manager in Knoxville. She is a graduate of both Purdue University and Iowa State University, where she studied Environmental Water and Soil Science and earned her A.S. in Agriculture and a B.S. in Agronomy. Originally from Indiana, she moved her husband and two sons to Pella in 2016 so she could help open new Fresh Thyme Farmers Market stores in Iowa and Nebraska. In this role, she also provided extensive continued support to the eight stores across the region, assisting in recruiting and training, leading department managers and their teams to run well-stocked departments while providing excellent customer service, monitoring departmental financials and overseeing the transition to an updated perpetual inventory tracking and auto-ordering system. When not at work, she enjoys traveling, weekend motorcycle trips and events, working in her perennial gardens, researching family genealogy, and spending time with family and friends.