Four grain cooperatives were recognized by GROWMARK, Inc. with the Ceres award during the 2014 Grain Leadership Conference.

The award, named for the Roman goddess of grain, is awarded to grain cooperatives that achieve excellence by meeting at least three out of the four following criteria: EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization)/per storage capacity, return on invested capital, bushel retention, and GROWMARK’s capital guideline ratio.

Qualifying for the Ceres award, in alphabetical order, are:
– Grant Park Cooperative Grain Company, Grant Park, Illinois, Daniel Stadt is the manager and Richard Riechers is the president.
– Kasbeer Farms Elevator Co. Cooperative, Kasbeer, Illinois, Joe Louis is the manager and Kenneth Bohm is the president.
– McNabb Grain Company, McNabb, Illinois, Bart Ericson is the manager and Ben Day is the president.
– Minier Cooperative Grain Company, Minier, Illinois, Keith Swigart is the manager and Duane Haning is the president.