CHS Inc.
CHS Inc. is a Fortune 500 secondary cooperative owned by United States agricultural cooperatives, farmers, ranchers, and thousands of preferred stock holders. Based in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, CHS owns and operates various food processing and wholesale, farm supply, financial services and retail businesses. It also distributes Cenex brand fuel in 19 midwestern and western states as one of North America's largest c-store networks. It is a co-owner of Ventura Foods, a vegetable oil processor.
CHS is ranked 1st on the National Cooperative Bank Co-op 100 list of mutuals and cooperatives, and 96th in Fortune 500's 2018 list of U.S. corporations.
History
CHS's history began in 1931 with the founding of the Farmers Union |Farmers Union] Central Exchange in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Later, the core cooperative company became Cenex, from the combination of the last two words in its previous name.In 1998, Cenex merged with Harvest States Cooperatives. Harvest States was the product of a 1983 merger between North Pacific Grain Growers and the Farmers Union Grain Terminal Association. The merged cooperative took the name Cenex Harvest States, adopting "CHS" as its brand name. In 2003, it changed its legal name to CHS Inc.
In 1963, the CHS unit formerly called Honeymead Products Company was involved in a Mississippi River [oil spill |major oil spill that reached the Mississippi River]. 3.5 million gallons of crude soybean oil and processed salad oil from the Honeymead Mankato soybean oil processing plant and petroleum from the Richards Oil Plant in Savage spilled into the Blue Earth River and other nearby waterways, eventually diverting into the Mississippi River. Mass wildlife deaths and habitat destruction followed. Public outrage about the widespread environmental devastation and inadequate government response to the disaster led to state legislation to protect Minnesota waterways, and eventually the establishment of the Minnesota [Pollution Control Agency] four years later. Previously no state agency existed to set or enforce rules to preempt environmental disasters and water contamination.