Officials from the U.

Friday, July 30, 1999

Officials from the U.S. Department of Labor met with members of Exol’s board to finalize their investment in the ethanol plant Thursday. The USDA is guaranteeing $4 million of a $5 million loan made to the cooperative by Stearns Bank.

Gary DeCramer, USDA state director, said the agency has also invested an additional $400,000 with a Rural Economic Development Loan through the Freeborn-Mower Rural Electric Cooperative.

He said the meeting was not only to finalize the agreement, but to celebrate the benefits to area farmers.

&uot;We’re seeing a catastrophic decline in the farm economy,&uot; said DeCramer. &uot;This (cooperative) is a way for farmers to take control of processing and take control of marketing. This is a way for them to add value to what they grow.&uot;

John Herges, president of Stearns Bank of St. Cloud, said the financial institution aims to help industries such as Exol.

&uot;This is one of a number of ethanol plants we’ve served,&uot; Herges said. &uot;We’ve been putting together a financial package that is designed to help businesses to expand in rural areas. An offshoot of that is to create employment.&uot;

Exol has achieved both. One hundred percent farmer-owned, Exol also employs 26 people. There are over 500 farmer investors in the cooperative that has set records.

&uot;We broke all the industry records,&uot; said Gary Pestorius, chair of the executive board, referring to how quickly the plant came to 100 percent capacity and other industry standards. &uot;This plant now holds all the records.&uot;

Exol processes 5 billion bushels of corn each year purchased from the area cooperative members.

&uot;It’s one of the only bright spots in a time where farming is tough,&uot; said Herges.

According to AP reports, the demand for ethanol

Ethanol consumes about 16 percent of the U.S. corn crop and adds about 28 cents per bushel to its price.

Any new market for corn could have a significant impact on the commodity’s price, which is the lowest it’s been in 10 years.

Minnesota produced 124 million gallons of ethanol in fiscal year 1998 and an estimated 160 million gallons in fiscal 1999, which ended June 30, said Ralph Groschen, a marketing specialist with the state Department of Agriculture.