Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) has rebranded its ethanol-production facility in Belle Plaine, SK, to align it with the co-op brand.
The Co-op Ethanol Complex (CEC), formerly known as Terra Grain Fuels, will continue to source feedstock from Western Canadian farmers and manufacture ethanol, which, in turn, is added as renewable content to gasoline produced at the Co-op Refinery Complex for distribution across the Co-operative Retailing System (CRS), which serves more than 620 communities across Western Canada.
“We are excited to unveil the new CEC brand and to once again welcome our employees at CEC to the Co-op system,” says Brian Humphreys, FCL’s Vice-President of Energy. “The acquisition of this facility has been an important strategic investment by FCL and fits with our commitment to be a responsible and sustainable producer of the transportation fuels that power the Western Canadian economy.”
The CEC facility produces up to 150 million litres of ethanol every year from 350,000 tonnes of wheat, corn, rye and triticale sourced from more than 400 Western Canadian farmers. In addition to ethanol, CEC also produces about 130,000 tonnes of dried distillers’ grain every year, which can be incorporated as a high protein additive into livestock feed rations.
FCL acquired the 185,000-square-foot plant in June 2019. The facility has 47 full-time team members and contributes $80 million to $110 million per year to the economy.
According to the company, this co-op has a long-standing relationship with farm customers across Western Canada. This relationship is mutually beneficial and has grown over time to one where the co-op not only provides products and services to local ranchers and producers, but also purchases their crops and products, as is the case with the CEC.
Federated Co-operatives Limited is a co-operative owned by more than 190 independent retail co-operatives in Western Canada, which are in turn owned by more than 1.8 million individuals.
