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Investing in Infrastructure: Soybean Farmers Provide $1.3 Million Ceremonial Check for Soybean Meal Export Expansion

By Soy Transportation Coalition

Soybean farmer leaders on July 30th presented the Port of Grays Harbor a ceremonial check in the amount of $1.3 million for the port’s Terminal 4 Expansion and Redevelopment Project.  The Soy Transportation Coalition held its summer board meeting in Vancouver, Washington, on July 29-30, in order to visit soybean and grain export facilities within the greater Pacific Northwest region that accounts for 25% of U.S. soybean exports.  On July 30th, the group traveled to the Port of Grays Harbor in Aberdeen, Washington, in order to tour the Ag Processing, Inc. (AGP) soybean meal export terminal and receive an update on its future expansion. 

AGP, the Omaha-based cooperative that owns and operates ten soybean processing facilities in the Midwest, announced in March of 2022 a major expansion and upgrade to its export terminal at the Port of Grays Harbor.  AGP plans to construct additional storage at its Terminal 2 facility and develop a new ship loader at Terminal 4.  These investments – scheduled to be operational in late 2025 to early 2026 – will ultimately allow the AGP terminal to increase annual soybean meal exports from 3 million to over 6 million metric tons.  It is anticipated that AGP’s soybean processing plant in St. Joseph, Missouri, will be one of the locations providing soybean meal for the additional export volumes.   

In order to accommodate this growth and investment, the Port of Grays Harbor will add 40,000 ft. of railroad track, build a new fendering system and storm water collection and treatment facility, and create more than 30 acres of additional cargo storage area.  These investments will allow the port to efficiently handle the increased volume of soybean meal while mitigating the surface traffic impact to the local community.   

Given the significant benefit these planned investments will provide to U.S. soybean farmers, the Soy Transportation Coalition and other soybean farmer organizations committed $1.3 million to help offset some of the pre-engineering, design, and site development costs of the Port of Grays Harbor Terminal 4 Expansion and Redevelopment Project.  The funding commitment was announced in the fall of 2022.  The Soy Transportation Coalition’s summer 2024 board meeting provided the opportunity for the farmer leaders to visit the export facility and present the port with the ceremonial check.   

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The soybean industry is currently experiencing a number of challenges. It is therefore very important for soybean farmer organizations to promote any opportunity to increase the efficiency of our exports.  The expansion project at the Port of Grays Harbor is an excellent example of this.
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Tim Gottman
Soy Transportation Coalition Vice Chairman & Missouri Soybean Farmer

One of the more profound developments within the soybean industry in recent history has been the proliferation of current and planned expansion of soybean processing throughout the United States – largely inspired by the demand for soybean oil as one of the primary feedstocks for the expanding renewable energy market.  These current and planned investments present a challenge and opportunity to effectively access markets for the increased soybean meal.  The farmer leaders of the Soy Transportation Coalition and other organizations are demonstrating their commitment to increasing U.S. soybean meal exports through this strategic investment.  

“Soybean farmers have recognized that infrastructure can either be an impediment to farmer profitability and success, or it can be a facilitator of farmer profitability and success,” explains Mike Steenhoek, Executive Director of the Soy Transportation Coalition.  “It all depends upon the degree to which we maintain and invest in our supply chain.  We are therefore very excited to support significant improvements to our supply chain like the investment at the Port of Grays Harbor.”  

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This contribution aided this transformative project during a critical point. But this project isn’t just about Grays Harbor.  This project is about all of you – the farmers – and the transportation of a global food source.  And we can’t thank you enough for having the confidence in AGP, our Port, and this project to step up and be willing to play such a role.
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Leonard Barnes
Port of Grays Harbor Executive Director

In October of 2022, the U.S. Maritime Administration announced the approval of the Port of Grays Harbor’s Port Infrastructure Development Program grant application.  The port received $25.5 million for their Terminal 4 Expansion and Redevelopment Project.  There were two motivations for soybean farmer organizations to provide funding for this important project: 1.) To provide meaningful investment to a project that will enhance U.S. soybean meal exports in the near future and 2.) For the Port of Grays Harbor and AGP to be able to highlight the funding commitment from farmer organizations, which would enhance the viability and competitiveness of their grant application.  Soybean farmers have a long history of seeing their funding leveraged – thereby helping accelerate project completion and increasing its scale and scope.  The investment by soybean farmers for the Port of Grays Harbor project is another terrific example of this.    

“Over the years, AGP has developed a very strong relationship with customers in southeast Asia,” explains Lowell Wilson, Chairman of the Board of AGP.  “This project at the port will significantly improve speed, capacity, and product availability for the benefit of our current and future customers.  In short, the work being done here will ensure the direct link from the farmer to the international customer grows ever stronger.”    

“The financial contribution the Soy Transportation Coalition and the supporting associations have committed to this important infrastructure project does not go unnoticed by the Port and our community,” says Phil Papac, President of the Port of Grays Harbor Commission. “We are incredibly proud of the role the Port plays in exporting the crops that you grow, that AGP processes, and that help feed millions of people throughout the world.”   

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