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GROW ing |
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Help farmers grow crops and livestock
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MARK eting |
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Help farmers market grain |
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GROWMARK is a federated, regional agricultural cooperative that provides products
and services to its member cooperatives in the Midwest and Ontario. Local member
cooperatives, in turn, provide more than 250,000 farmers with crop inputs, energy
products, feed and animal health products, grain handling systems, lawn care products,
grain marketing services, and more.
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GROWMARK has a long, and committed history
of providing solutions that help farmers reduce risks, make smarter decisions, improve
profits and make the business of farming easier.
FS Seed is distributed through your
local FS Member Cooperative, providing complete agronomic recommendations and backed
by season-long support.
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1920s |
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The GROWMARK System begins with the organization of local
cooperatives by Farm Bureau members.
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1927 |
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Nine local cooperatives organize to form Illinois Farm
Supply Company. |
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1955 |
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Illinois Farm Supply Co. adopts the FS trademark.
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| 1961 |
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The home office of Illinois Farm Supply Co. moves from Chicago to Bloomington, Ill.
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| 1962 |
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FS Services, Inc. organizes through the merger of Illinois
Farm Supply Co. and Farm Bureau Service Company of Iowa.
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| 1965 |
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Wisconsin Farmco Service Cooperative and Producers Seed
Company merge with FS Services.
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| 1980 |
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The consolidation of FS Services and Illinois Grain Corporation
establishes GROWMARK, Inc. |
| 1985 |
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The consolidation of Midwest grain terminals and merchandising
operations between GROWMARK and Archer Daniels Midland Company creates ADM/GROWMARK.
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| 1994 |
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GROWMARK acquires the assets of United Co-operatives of
Ontario and gains 37 member cooperatives in the Canadian province.
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| 1998 |
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GROWMARK and Novartis Seeds, Inc. form a venture that provides
FS cooperatives the opportunity to offer seed solutions from both the FS and NK®brand seed lines.
GROWMARK and Land O'Lakes create an alliance in the feed business. |
| 1999 |
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GROWMARK joins FFR, an interregional seed research cooperative
based in West Lafayette, Ind. owned by three other regional cooperatives.
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| 2000 |
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GROWMARK begins marketing products directly to cooperative
customers in Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan. GROWMARK forms an alliance with Remington
Seed to provide corn hybrid production capabilities for the System from the Williams,
Iowa facility GROWMARK previously owned. |
| 2002 |
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GROWMARK acquires the assets of Agway Agronomy and Seedway,
Inc. in the Northeast U.S. |
| 2003 |
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GROWMARK forms alliance with TruServ Canada Cooperative
to provide an expanded line of consumer products and services to Ontario member cooperatives.
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| 2004 |
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GROWMARK forms alliance with Decision Commodities to deliver and develop grain risk
management products and services. |
| 2005 |
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FS PARTNERS formed to provide management services to member co-operatives in Ontario.
GROWMARK acquires ownership of AgVantage FS in Iowa to maintain local presence of
FS products and services. |
| 2006 |
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GROWMARK adds the ownership of New Horizon FS and New Century FS in Iowa to ensure
local presence of FS products and services. GROWMARK and Illini FS, Inc. merge.
GROWMARK purchases Huisinga and Willow Hill grain companies in Southern Illinois
and partners with Effingham-Clay Service Co. and Wabash Valley Service Co. to form
Total Grain Marketing, LLC. GROWMARK invests in a soy biodiesel production facility
being built by Mid-America Biofuels, in Mexico, Mo. GROWMARK forges long-term agreement
with Remington Seed to produce and package FS Seed products. GROWMARK buys the assets
of McCollister and Company, a family-owned manufacturer and marketer of heavy duty
lubricants for automotive, agricultural, and industrial applications. |
| 2007 |
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GROWMARK teams with Illinois Farm Bureau to form AgriVisor, LLC, which offers farmers
the best grain and livestock marketing tools available. GROWMARK acquires 100% of
STAR Energy, LLC, a retail energy company serving northwest Iowa. GROWMARK transfers
ownership of its Piper City, Ill. seed production and conditioning plant to PRECISION
SOYA, LLC of Ft. Wayne, Ind. RIVERLAND FS, Two Rivers FS, and West Central FS partner
with GROWMARK to create WESTERN GRAIN MARKETING, LLC. |
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