RAVEN AG TEAM MONTHLY UPDATE - JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2010
Greetings from the Raven Ag Team:
What a winter so far……In the upper mid-west we’ve enjoyed about 3 feet of snow and lately lots and lots of fog, freezing rain and sleet! For those of us who have winter hobbies, we aren’t complaining, but I know that those of you who are working in it trying to feed cattle or pick up grain from your piles, that this is less than pleasant for you. I’m with you in spirit.
As I have been pointing out the last couple of months, a big challenge in the grain industry is handling that huge volume of grain at harvest. Many of you are using temporary storage piles outdoors and the weather has NOT been much fun. There is a large round pile near my home and I can see from the road that it is turning black….ouch. Let Raven assist next year with one of our durable GrainMax™ covers. Yes, I’ll admit that they are work to get put on, they cost money and you have to manage fans, etc., but what’s the alternative? 25%, 30% or higher shrink? I know the dollars that are invested need to be managed and what better way than to keep the grain pile from going black and hassling with all of that damaged grain in your elevator. Give us a call to get your GrainMax™ covers on order now, so you don’t have to think about them next fall.
We have unfortunately been seeing increases coming down the pipe in the resin markets, which will translate into some increases in the plastics you, use. Raven strives to manage our commodity prices just as you do in your business, so we will always give you the best VALUE possible. There are a lot of competitors out in the market that do nothing but talk about how cheap they are. Raven has a different approach and that is to give you the best price for a product that will actually work to your expectations. Remember the old adage, “you get what you pay for” and it’s no different in plastic production.
The FeedFresh™ product line is really grabbing the attention of the silage markets. We have been working on getting quotes out for the spring business and by all indicators, if you haven’t seen or heard about the product yet, you will this year! We are thrilled by the feedback we are receiving from the market about its OTR (Oxygen Transmission Rate) performance and strength. I was told by a customer not too long ago that although the person who went joy riding on his silage pile caused some minimal damage, the feed quality has been outstanding. Not really sure why someone would joyride on a silage pile, unless they thought it was a jump for their monster truck? I hope you are safe while working in the elements and I look forward to your questions.
Rodney Scholten
National Market Sales Specialist - Agriculture
