A Closer Look At…
Farmers Grain Terminal, Inc.
One of Mississippi's largest grain handlers,
Farmers Grain Terminal has five river elevators
where barges are loaded with grain. (Photos courtesty of Delta Design Group)
Co-op type: Grain marketing.
Headquarters: Greenville, Miss.
Product/service. Handling and merchandising of grain for members, since 1967.
Geographical area served- Mississippi Delta, northeast Louisiana, southeast Arkansas.
President/CEO: Steven F. Nail, since July 1996.
Number of plants/locations:- Eight plants, including five river elevators where barges are loaded: Greenville, Miss., Belzoni, Miss., Mound, La., Waterproof, La., and Lake Village, Ark. FGT's three inland elevators are located at Hollandale, Miss., Indianola, Miss., and Waverly, La.
Annual product volume. Won't say but FGT is one of the largest grain handlers in Mississippi with a storage capacity of 10 million bushels.
Annual sales revenue: $150 million-plus in 1997.
Number of members. 2,766 grain growers.
Number of employees: 70 year-round to 110 at harvest time.
Largest markets: FGT's grains are sold mostly to exporters. Its rice
and corn are also sold domestically with a large portion of FGT corn going to the poultry
and catfish industries. 
What's unique about this co-op. 1) "The way we've diversified to
keep up with members' changing crop mix,"says Harvey Parrish, FGT's vice president of
operations. "We started as a soybean and wheat facility. Now we also handle milo,
corn, and rice."
2) Farmers Grain Terminal was formed in 1967 with help from Staplcotn, a Mississippi
cotton marketing and warehousing cooperative (see related article). Staplecotn actually
handled FGTs accounting and management functions for the first several years.
Philosophy that drives this co-op: Says Parrish, "Our mission
statement says it: To provide good service, competitive prices, fair treatment,
maintenance of a strong capital base, and return of earnings to members."
Adds Nail, "Being locally owned and operated, we can be closer to
our customers' marketing needs. Our customers want personal service, the local touch.
They're very price conscious but they want service too."
Plans to keep viable in the 21st century: To stay attuned to
members' needs and the changes in their production. "We will be ready to adapt our
operations to service our members," Parrish says. "Farmers Grain Terminal is
their link to the market" 
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