Bulk Freight News & Industry Updates - Stay Ahead in Trucking

MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) -- A judge has given a trucker a suspended sentence for driving a tractor-trailer the wrong way on Interstate 90. Missoula County District Judge Ed McLean on Wednesday sentenced Darrell Shepherd to three years in prison for a criminal endangerment conviction. McLean suspended the sentence except for the 148 days that Shepherd has already served. The Montana Highway Patrol stopped Shepherd Oct. 31 after receiving a report of a tractor-trailer traveling the wrong way on I-90

The Trucker News Services 3/29/2012 LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The Women In Trucking (WIT) Association held its third annual Salute to Women Behind the Wheel at the Mid-America Trucking Show here March 24 celebrating the accomplishments of 211 female professional drivers with a combined total of over 200 million safe driving miles. Joyce Brenny, president of Brenny Transportation Inc. and Brenny Specialized Inc. of St. Cloud, Minn., addressed the audience of approximately 800 which included drivers

North American truckmakers such as Navistar International Corp. (NAV) (NAV) are poised for a third year of sales gains as the economic recovery forces fleet owners to replace aging vehicles. Shipments of Class 8 trucks, the backbone of interstate hauling, may rise 12 percent this year to more than 285,000, according to industry consultant FTR Associates. That follows gains of 65 percent and 29 percent the past two years as the industry rebounded from a recession-low of 120,000 in 2009. Car

WYOMING -- While investigating an oil spill in Hicks Creek last week, state Department of Environmental Protection officials found a nearby business to be in violation of the state's Solid Waste Management Act. DEP spokeswoman Colleen Connolly noted the violations found on the property of Bosco Inc. have not been linked to the oil leak that contaminated Hicks Creek and said that investigation is ongoing. She said that while crews were searching for the source of the petroleum that got into th

The health of the U.S. economy is improving but remains fragile according to three reports that track the activity of the national trucking industry. The American Trucking Associations' seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index rose 0.5% in February after falling a revised 4.6% in January. The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 112.9 in February, which was 1.3% above the pre

DES MOINES, IOWA Ethanol and corn sweetener manufacturer Grain Processing Corp. has been issued a notice by the Environmental Protection Agency that it has violated the Clean Air Act. Grain Processing was named in a notice of violation which alleges that between 2007 and 2011, its Muscatine, Iowa facility repeatedly violated limits on air emissions included in company permits. The notice does not address penalties, but says the EPA will consider additional enforcement action, which coul

The Associated Press 3/28/2012 NEW YORK -- Shares of Wabash National Corp. jumped Tuesday after the maker of truck trailers said it would diversify its business by purchasing liquid-transportation company Walker Group Holdings LLC for $360 million. THE SPARK: Wabash National said the deal will help it offer new products to its customers and will immediately start adding to its profits. Wabash makes the kind of heavy trailers that are used by freight haulers and semi-trucks. Walker makes tr

By ELVINA NAWAGUNA Lakeland Ledger Published: Tuesday, March 27, 2012 at 7:53 p.m. Last Modified: Tuesday, March 27, 2012 at 7:52 p.m. The price of diesel historically has been lower than that of gasoline, and diesel engines yield better mileage. So the trucking and logistics industry ran on the fuel. "At the time, we were innovative and insightful building engines around diesel," said Daniel Murray, vice president of research at American Trucking Research Institute. "It was more MPG-eff

Already burdened with eroding credit quality, many U.S. shipping companies will face greater challenges in the near future as their older fleets continue to age, Standard & Poor's said. "The U.S. domestic fleet likely will contract over the next ... View Original Post

BELLEVILLE -- A big new grain terminal is set to open soon in Fairmont City, with up to 500 trucks full of grain moving daily through East St. Louis en route to the Mississippi River barge-and-rail facility. The new terminal, which will be a combination barge-and-rail facility, is being built as a collaboration between food and feed giant Bunge North America, of St. Louis, and SEACOR Holdings Inc., of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The companies chose Fairmont City because it is the northernmost ice-fr

The Associated Press 3/27/2012 ST. PAUL, Minn. -- With diesel fuel prices climbing to $4 per gallon, Minnesota is offering long-haul truckers low-interest loans to help them save money, stay cool this summer and reduce pollution on overnight rest stops. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is offering loans at 4 percent to owner-operated long-haul truckers and small trucking companies to purchase "idle-reduction devices." They're small diesel auxiliary power units, known as APUs, or batte

Orascom Construction Industries (OCIC) rose the most in three weeks after posting the highest amount in building contract awards in almost four years and revealing it was close to selling a stake in Gavilon Group LLC. Orascom gained 2.6 percent, the biggest intraday rise since March 6, to 257 Egyptian pounds at 11:25 a.m. in Cairo, valuing the company at 53.2 billion pounds ($8.8 billion). The benchmark EGX 30 Index (EGX30) increased 2.1 percent. The sale of its 16.8 percent stake in Nebra

By JACK BOUBOUSHIAN CHICAGO (CN) - A federal judge has allowed an expert to testify that exposure to paint fumes killed a dog named Boomer and caused its owner to develop a serious respiratory illness. Steven Noffsinger says he and Boomer became sick while making a 2007 delivery of Dynaprime paint from a Valspar plant in Kankakee, Ill., to Santa Fe Springs, Calif. Dynaprime paint is a solvent-based coating designed for use on metal coils. While spending the night at a truc

ADM Alliance Nutrition Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Archer Daniels Midland Co., announced March 26 that it will build a new feed premix plant in Effingham, Ill., that will include enhanced controls and processes to meet the highest standards in safety and quality for pet food premixes and specialty blends. The plant will incorporate state-of-the-art stainless steel conveyances and processing equipment. Automation will enable real-time tracking of every ingredient through bar coding and

TIOGA, N.D. -- Along the wide-open expanses and rolling prairie of western North Dakota surrounding the state's booming oil patch, all sorts of bizarre litter can be found clogging the once picturesque roadside: Derelict hardhats, single boots, buckets, pallets, pieces of machinery, shredded semi tires, oily clothing, cigarette butts. The worst? Plastic jugs of urine pitched out windows as scores of truckers pass through oil country. Litter has become an escalating problem as the rush to t

A truck driver faces what a judge warned will be a "substantial" jail sentence after a jury convicted him of plotting to import $45,450 worth of cannabis. James Walker, 51, of Tommy Fox Road, St David's, showed no emotion as the verdict was returned on Friday. During the trial, which began a week ago, Supreme Court heard the drugs arrived in a consignment of dinnerware loaded into a wooden pallet that arrived on a cargo jet on May 12, 2010. Customs officers discovered the drugs packed i

Kosher pickles, kosher hot dogs, kosher salt ... and kosher trucking? It's become an interesting niche for a Vancouver business, and it doesn't even require any cooking. Food Express does observe the same guidelines used in kosher kitchens. But instead of following a recipe, Walt Keeney's operation deals with one ingredient at a time. And it's shipped in tanker-truck portions that you probably couldn't get into your fridge. Keeney gave an overview to The Columbian's Mary Ricks for a rec

Freightliner, the American truck-builder, has set their sights on revolutionary designs with an all-new, full-size "crossover" cab – the 'Revolution Innovation'. The concept rig was unveiled at this year's Mid-America Trucking Show in the United States. The designers claim that it was their inspiration from sports cars and aircrafts that ultimately led to its aerodynamic shape. The entire frame is made up of lightweight cold-rolled aluminium, leading to a weight reduction of almost 90 kg. The

By Anna-Louise Jackson and Anthony Feld BLOOMBERG NEWS 3 comments | Add a comment Trucking companies are struggling to find qualified drivers even as the U.S. unemployment rate remains at the highest level in almost 30 years. Driver turnover rose to 89 percent in the third quarter of 2011, the highest since 2008 and the fourth consecutive quarter of increases, according to data from the American Trucking Associations. That's mostly because new regulations and job prospects in other i

LOUISVILLE, KY -- American truck driver Mike Schiotis, his voice quaking and eyes tearing up, told a group of trucking journalists last night in Louisville how Jesus helped him the night he saved a passers-by's life last November. The reason Schiotis was talking to the journalists? He won the annual Goodyear Highway Hero Award and the award is presented at the annual meeting of the Truck Writers of North America. (TWNA), which coincides with the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS), in Louisville

NEW DELHI, MAR 24: Freight rates for ten metric tonne load rose up to Rs 1,000 in the local truck transport today following increased cargo movements. Transporters said less availability of trucks into the market against increased movements of cargo, mainly pushed up some of centres freight rates. Delhi to Mysore and Kochi rates moved up by Rs.1,000 each to Rs.62,000 and Rs.66,000. Rates to Pondicherry, Bangalore and Coimbatore also looked up by Rs.1,000 each to Rs.60,000, Rs.57,000 a

Mark Szakonyi, Associate Editor | Mar 22, 2012 7:00PM GMT The Journal of Commerce Online - News Story Premium paid by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway shouldn't be used in railroad's cost base, they say Shippers on Thursday got their shot to tell the Surface Transportation Board that it's unfair for them to pay higher rates to BNSF Railway because of the $8.1 billion premium Berkshire Hathaway paid to acquire the railroad in 2010. The premium, part of the Warren Buffett-led company's $3

A Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman says a dump truck hit a moving freight train filled with soybeans, punching a hole in one of the cars. The Associated Press CENTRALIA, Wash. -- A Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman says a dump truck hit a moving freight train filled with soybeans, punching a hole in one of the cars. Spokesman Gus Melonas says the dump truck driver apparently fled after the Thursday evening crash. Soybeans spilled from a softball-sized hole in the rail car

By The Capital-Journal A fire in the underground belt system of a Cargill grain elevator Thursday in northwest Topeka caused an estimated $7,000 in damage but no injuries, Topeka Fire Department officials said. Firefighters were called to 1845 N.W. Gordon Street at around 11:04 a.m. responding to a report of smoke. Workers at the Cargill sited evacuated the structure prior to the arrival of suppression crews. Once suppression crews arrived, they found heavy smoke coming from an under

An old adage states, "Rain makes grain." Recent rains will make more 2012 wheat production unless temperatures get below freezing. Because of early wheat development, a freeze could drastically lower expected Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas wheat production. Advertisement Wheat came out of dormancy in relatively good condition. Warmer temperatures and moisture resulted in rapid recovery from poor stands. In most of the hard red winter (HRW) wheat area, yields could be well above average. Po

A federal judge on Thursday ordered regulators to start proceedings to withdraw approval for the use of common antibiotics in animal feed, citing concerns that overuse is endangering human health by creating antibiotic-resistant "superbugs". U.S. Magistrate Judge Theodore Katz ordered the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to begin proceedings unless makers of the drugs can produce evidence that their use is safe. If they can't, then the FDA must withdraw approval for non-therapeutic use of tho

TAMPA -- Quality Distribution Inc. is creating jobs and driving toward increased revenue in fracking even though natural gas prices have dropped and new U.S. Department of Energy estimates are substantially below previous supply predictions. The bulk tank truck carrier has expanded its operations that serve energy companies extracting oil and natural gas from underground shale reservoirs. It is hauling water used in drilling for natural gas while it also services oil companies. "There is

TML takes over Gothenburg Land O'Lakes Local livestock producers and even pet owners who previously purchased feed products from Land O'Lakes Purina Feed in Gothenburg will need to find a new supplier. The Land O'Lakes operation has been taken over by The Maschhoffs, LLC (TML), a long-time Land O'Lakes partner. TML is one of the largest family-owned pork production networks in North America. It is headquartered in Carlyle, IL, with hog production sites and feed mills across southwest Il

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (WTW) -- South Dakota officials knew last summer that a grain company was swimming in red ink but it wasn't until January that the state moved to halt its operations, because of a lack of communication between agencies. The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission is going to court to seize the assets of Anderson Seed Co., a sunflower plant in Redfield that is millions of dollars in debt and has stopped paying its suppliers. The North Dakota Public Service Commission also ha

The price of gasoline can differ wildly depending on where you live. A driver fueling up in Denver will pay, on average, $3.64 per gallon. But just a couple states over in Chicago, gas goes for north of $4.28 for gallon. That's about a $10 difference to fill up an average gas tank. Why the disparity? (Gasbuddy.com) James Hamilton has an excellent, chart-filled post breaking it down. Part of the story is taxes -- different states tax gasoline at different rates, depending on how much highwa

By Michael Erman, Soyoung Kim and Victoria Howley NEW YORK/LONDON | Thu Mar 22, 2012 6:37am EDT (Reuters) - Several Asian trading firms, including Mitsui & Co (8031.T), Marubeni Corp (8002.T) and Noble Group (NOBG.SI), are in the running for U.S. grain and energy trader Gavilon, which could be valued at about $5 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter. A deal for the commodities trader, which began exploring a sale in January, would give the Asian companies a sizable presence in

University of Illinois research reports that swine producers can feed distiller's dried grain with solubles (DDGS) to their pigs without concern for sulfur content. "When you buy DDGS, you don't have to be concerned about the level of sulfur it contains because there doesn't appear to be any impact on pig performance," said U of I animal sciences professor Hans Stein. According to the researcher, DDGS, a co-product of the ethanol industry, is used as a feed ingredient in diets fed to swine

The Ohio attorney general Wednesday filed an antitrust suit against Cargill Inc. and Morton Salt, alleging the two companies sold road salt to state government agencies at above-market prices. The suit by Attorney General Mike DeWine claims the firms, two of the nation's largest road salt suppliers, divided the Ohio rock salt market between themselves, agreeing not to compete with each other. The lawsuit seeks an injunction to prevent Cargill and Morton from continuing this alleged agreeme

By Cathy Locke Sacramento Bee A man was reported in fair condition after being buried up to his chest in a grain elevator in Colusa County for nearly four hours Tuesday. Chief Jeff Gilbert of the Williams Fire Protection Authority said the Dunnigan Fire Department received a call from the Adams Grain Co. about 9:20 a.m. Dunnigan firefighters called for assistance from the Colusa County Confined-Space Rescue Team, composed of rescue personnel from seven fire agencies. The team arrived abou

Trucks fueled by liquid natural gas might offer shippers an escape from fuel price pain. By James A. Cooke Email Print ShareThis Reprints 2 Comments Tired of sweating higher diesel fuel prices? Then maybe it's time to find a trucking company that's running its delivery fleet on liquefied natural gas (LNG) instead of diesel. LNG is the liquid form of natural gas, which is primarily methane. It's related to compressed natural gas (CNG), which, as the name suggests, is condensed under h

Trucking companies are struggling to find qualified drivers even as the U.S. unemployment rate remains at the highest level in almost 30 years. Driver turnover rose to 89 percent in the third quarter of 2011, the highest since 2008 and the fourth consecutive quarter of increases, according to data from the American Trucking Associations. That's mostly because new regulations and job prospects in other industries are creating a "quality shortage" of available workers, said Bob Costello, chief ec

Police in Greensboro, N.C., are investigating thefts of tires and rims from two separate trucking companies. In all, Detectives said 60 commercial truck tires and wheels worth about $80,000 were stolen from Triad Freightliner and Whites International. At Triad Freightliner, workers told police someone forced entry into the business lot and took with nearly two dozen tires and rims from multiple commercial carriers. Representatives from Whites International reported a similar forced entry

DENTON -- Maybe the little engine that could won't ever again. For 20 years, the roar of the Central Montana Rail echoed through this high plains valley as the aging locomotives of this scrappy nonprofit railroad hauled grain along 87 miles of track that BNSF Railway wouldn't service. CMR's service kept the grain elevators in Denton and Geraldine viable, which in turn spared the towns the fatal blow of rail abandonment. Then came the epic rains of 2011, which sent the usually tame Judith River

Nearly 60 gallons of diesel fuel spilled after a driver of a semitruck didn't disconnect the ground pump before pulling away, according to the Phoenix Fire Department. The driver was fueling up at a Valero gas station near 51st Avenue and Buckeye Road Monday morning when he forgot to disconnect the ground pump and drove away, according to fire officials. Diesel fuel is not highly flammable, so the focus is to just clean up spill, according to the fire department. There were no reported

By Doug Cameron Archer Daniels Midland Co. ADM -0.31% said Tuesday it had looked at buying Canadian grain-handler Viterra Inc. (VT.T), but viewed the asking price as too rich despite identifying "substantial synergies." Glencore International PLC (GLEN.LN) announced an agreed bid of C$6.1 billion (US$6.2 billion) for Viterra Tuesday following a two-week sale process that attracted interest from many of the world's largest agribusiness and commodity trading concerns, according to people fami

by SARAH SQUIRES and EMILY BUSS The Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) released a statement earlier this month assuring the public that the safety of Winona's Interstate bridge isn't being threatened by an increase in frac sand trucks, and that those trucks are within the 80,000 pound weight limit placed on the structure following its emergency closure in 2008. Mn/DOT's data from the Weigh-In-Motion (WIM) scale on the bridge shows a dramatic increase in overweight truck traff

Every day thousands of trucks in Asia, Europe, and the Americas run empty, pushing up the world's fuel prices and degrading its air. The benefits could be huge. Overall, the transport sector accounts for 60 percent of the world's oil consumption and a quarter of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). RELATED: Glimpses of life after fossil fuel Why do transport fleets run so inefficiently, especially in an era of high fuel prices? One

EAST HEMPFIELD TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- The owner of a Lancaster County trucking company pleaded guilty to federal logbook fraud Friday. Prosecutors said Dean Landis, the owner of D.A. Landis Trucking in East Hempfield Township, kept fake logbooks between 2007 and 2009 to cover up excessive hours behind the wheel. By law, truckers can only drive 11 hours a day, and they have to take at least 10 hours off between shifts. Landis faces up to five years in prison. His sentencing is in July. Copyright 20

Although the opening of cross-border trucking is moving slowly, it will be key so the border between Mexico and the United States can be more efficient, manageable and operational Monday, March 19, 2012 By: Francisco Diaz The Laredo Sun LAREDO, TX. - Salvador Monroy Andrade, director of cross-border trucking from the Ministry of Communications and Transport in Mexico, said the future looks bright and will gradually adjust details that are not working at the moment. Monroy Andrade, who was

By REX L. TROUTE [email protected] A construction project under way at the Archer Daniels Midland elevator in Burlington will bring a few more jobs to town. ADM's weigh station at 701 Cash St. is getting a second floor added on top of the existing structure. "We are moving our offices from Galesburg to Burlington," said Brian Buller, commercial manager for ADM in Galesburg, Ill.. The five employees that make up the operations staff in Galesburg will be making the move to th

PORTLAND, Maine - Heavy trucks are being temporarily banned from thousands of miles of secondary roads across northern New England with the early arrival of spring. The mild late-winter weather has prompted officials to restrict heavy traffic on secondary roads two, three, and even four weeks earlier than usual in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, where it is an annual ritual to post signs on poles along roadways warning heavy trucks to stay off. When roads are "posted'' to protect them d

March 19 (Bloomberg) -- Glencore International Plc, the largest publicly traded commodity supplier, and two Canadian agricultural companies are nearing a deal to buy Viterra Inc., said two people with knowledge of the plan. Glencore is bidding with Agrium Inc. and Richardson International Ltd. for Regina, Saskatchewan-based Viterra, the people said, asking not to be identified before a formal announcement. A deal may be announced within 24 hours, one of the people said. No final accord has be

CHANNAHON, IL (CNN) - The owner of a Chicago-area trucking company brought his business back from the brink. Joe Tovo, president of DNJ Trucking, was close to bankruptcy, and had to make some very tough decisions, including slashing his own pay. "We really tightened up our ship, and it turned things around," Tovo said. In late 2007 and into 2008 the business, which was started by Tovo's father, was on the verge of bankruptcy. "It was probably the hardest time in my life. Working 16 t

INDIANAPOLIS (WTW) -- Indiana community foundations are hoping rising grain prices will increase charitable giving by farmers by spurring them to give commodities, not cash. The Internal Revenue Service allows farmers to give commodities instead of money, but many charitable groups hadn't started promoting the practice until recently, the Indianapolis Business Journal reported (http://bit.ly/wcl1EG ) . "So many of them are unaware of this benefit," said Mark Robbins, vice president at the

(Eds note: Profanity in last paragraph) * House fly larvae can be made into protein-rich feed * This can replace fishmeal, which depends on fish stocks * British entrepreneur plans full commercial maggot plant * Another African fly being studied as "latrine cleaner" By Wendell Roelf STELLENBOSCH, South Africa, March 16 (Reuters) - Families tucking into a Sunday dinner of roast chicken or pork may not relish the idea of animals fattened on maggots. But one British entrepreneu

Tennessee authorities are asking federal transportation officials to investigate a truck driver whose rig struck a Tennessee Highway Patrol cruiser. The trooper inside the parked police car remained in critical condition at a Knoxville hospital. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported Sgt. Lowell Russell squeezed Gov. Bill Haslam's hand during an impromptu visit at University of Tennessee Hospital on Wednesday. Court records cited by the newspaper stated truck driver Eric D. Lewis of Orlando

Although the Senate failed Tuesday to pass amendments renewing the biodiesel tax credit, two other amendments to the Highway Bill important to agriculture were approved. One of the amendments, introduced by Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and co-sponsored by Senator Pat Roberts, R-Kan., will continue an exemption for agricultural truck drivers concerning regulations on maximum driving and on-duty times during the busy seasons of planting and harvest. The amendment would apply to drivers trans

A strange new growth has emerged from the manure pits of midwestern hog farms. The results are literally explosive. Since 2009, six farms have blown up after methane trapped in an unidentified, pit-topping foam caught a spark. In the afflicted region, the foam is found in roughly 1 in 4 hog farms. There's nothing farmers can do except be very careful. Researchers aren't even sure what the foam is. "This has all started in the last four or five years here. We don't have any idea where it

An Athens man remained in critical condition Thursday night following a head-on collision with a fertilizer truck on Browns Ferry Road one mile south of Athens. The accident caused a truck to overturn, spilling dry fertilizer onto the roadway, over the side of a bridge and onto the mudflats below. J.C. Lawler Jr., 69, was heading west on Browns Ferry about 8:25 a.m. Thursday when his 1999 Ford truck and a 1991 Mack truck loaded with fertilizer collided on a narrow bridge east of Interstate

In Minnesota, Alan Willits, Cargill Corn Milling president reaffirmed that the company is planning to spend $200 million to expand and retrofit their corn processing facility in Fort Dodge Iowa. In an interview with Reuters, Willits stated, "We want to be a part of that whether it's serving our farm customers or our food customers. We don't think we can be relevant to them if we don't have some skin in the game relative to biofuels. That was one of the motivations to invest in that facility."

RIDGEFIELD -- State Trooper Dave Hodel was stopped on the shoulder of Interstate 5 northbound in an unmarked SUV on Tuesday afternoon. For all the world he looked like an ordinary motorist with car trouble. Not quite. Hodel was part of a 17-officer crackdown on truckers who try to bypass the Washington State Patrol's Port of Entry truck scalehouse and inspection station in Ridgefield. It was the first time so many officers from four agencies performed such a trucker crackdown. It's 144

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Although Jimmy Thomas' 2,500-acre family farm near Roxboro, north of Durham, N.C., is hundreds of miles from the fertile soil of the Midwest, he is acutely aware of what farmers there are up to this year. With prices for commodities such as corn, soybeans and wheat at historic highs, U.S. farmers are expected to plant the most acres this year that they have in a generation. Farmers in the Midwest, where the bulk of those crops are grown, are being particularly aggressive.

(Grain Valley, Mo., March 14, 2012) – The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, the largest trade organization that represents the rights of professional truck drivers, thanked the U.S. Senate for its passage of a two-year surface transportation reauthorization bill today. "We are grateful for the hard work and progress made toward finalizing a highway reauthorization," said Todd Spencer, OOIDA Executive Vice President. "While not perfect, the passing of this bill represents an impor

NORA SPRINGS, Iowa --- The Floyd County Board of Adjustment on Monday approved a request from Archer Daniels Midland to build a grain terminal facility despite public protest. More than 50 people attended a public hearing. Most who spoke opposed putting a 25-car rail loading facility at the site on 180th Street east of Avon Avenue in Nora Springs. The hearing began at the site to give everyone a chance to look at it, then moved to City Hall. David Grooters, an attorney hired by the neighborin

Agricultural retailer Agrium is being cited as a potential player in a Viterra takeover, with analysts calling the Calgary-based company a logical fit for any deal. "Agrium would love to have Viterra's agri-business," PI Financial analyst Jason Zandberg said. Agrium's Richard Downey said Tuesday the company is "declining to comment on speculation or rumours." It is just one of the companies that has been suggested as a possible buyer since Viterra said last week it had received expressi

Talk about a bad choice for a best man. Accused Hutaree militia ringleader David Stone Sr. had become so fond of a trucker he knew as "Jersey Steve" that he made him best man at his wedding. But it turned out that Jersey Steve was a Federal Bureau of Investigation informant who was spying on the militia and eventually became the government's key witness in a terrorism trial against David Stone, his wife, two sons and three others -- all of whom are charged with plotting a violent revolt ag

Prabhudas Lilladher has come out with its report on automobile sector. Our interaction with the industry experts suggests that LCV Goods segment is likely to grow at 28-29%, whereas M&HCV Goods segment can grow at 8-9% in FY12E. According to our assessment, it is unlikely that M&HCV Goods space will see a negative growth, whereas LCV segment is likely to grow in 14-16% range in FY13E. According to IFTRT report, the ensuing month of March 2012 should witness increased sales volumes because the f

BLOOMBERG NEWS Some winter wheat, planted in September and harvested in May, already has entered the jointing stage, when stems begin to emerge from the plant, Jim Shroyer of Kansas State University said. That leaves the grain more at risk from a freeze. In April 2007, temperatures plunged as low as 15 degrees Fahrenheit in central Kansas, leading to a drop in the state's harvest to a five-year low, government data show. Temperatures may climb above 80 degrees Fahrenheit this week in parts

ROCKFORD, IA-A grain terminal facility is one step closer to moving to north Iowa. The Floyd County Board of Adjustment approved a conditional use permit for the company Monday. "Archer Daniels Midland" or ADM is looking to build between Nora springs and Rockford. But not everyone is on board with the change. The people who live near the proposed site in Rockford said the facility is not family friendly. They also say there is no need for another grain plant in the area. And even though

BY JACK KATZANEK STAFF WRITER [email protected] Published: 13 March 2012 05:48 PM A Text Size Truck tonnage fell off in January but the leading economist in the industry does not sound at all worried. One reason was the industry's drivers were extremely busy in December. Freight tonnage fell 4 percent in January from the previous month, but December loads were so full the total of loads had to go down. Even on a seasonally adjusted basis, that's not a terribly disappointing number. "Last

SCHRIEVER, LA. -- Louisiana State Police say a Texas trucker died when his load of drill pipe shifted and his tractor-trailer toppled from a narrow bridge into a canal in Schriever (SHREE'-vur), leaving only one tire above water. The Courier reports (http://bit.ly/xMWGVo) that divers pulled 30-year-old Otto F. Tello of Channelview from the cab about 90 minutes after the accident Monday morning. Police said the truck was driving to a rig owned by Brammer Engineering Inc. when the pipes slid

NORA SPRINGS -- The Floyd County Board of Adjustment Monday approved 3-0 a request from the The Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) Co. to build a grain terminal facility near Nora Springs despite protests from the public. More than 50 people attended the public hearing. Most of those who spoke opposed placing the 25-car rail loading facility at the proposed site on 180th Street, just east of Avon Avenue. The hearing began at the site to give everyone a chance to look at it, then moved to Nora Spring

A 57-year-old truck driver finished loading at a cement plant and pulled up to a catwalk station to close a lid on the top of his tanker. It was a rainy day and the driver was wearing running shoes. The catwalk was an older guardrail system with gangways that lowered but left a small gap between the bottom of the guardrail and the tank. The driver parked his truck correctly underneath and climbed the catwalk. He lowered the gangway to the top of his tanker. As he attempted to close the tanker

Thanks to high commodity prices and surging productivity, U.S. farmers earned a net income of nearly $98 billion last year -- a record, according to the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute. Those strong earnings are helping boost the demand for farmland. In the past year, even as most Americans struggled with falling home prices, farmers saw spikes in the price of land used for agriculture. As spring now approaches, farmers are gearing up to plant again, and farm stores are hum

By TIM MEKEEL Staff Writer When a local trucking executive learned that his firm was hauling tainted milk, he was supposed to destroy the product. Instead, Dean A. Landis, owner of D.A. Landis Trucking, found a willing out-of-state buyer, federal prosecutors allege. Landis sold the bad milk to a New Jersey cheese company for a fraction of the price of good milk, the prosecutors say. The New Jersey company then used the tainted but cheap milk to make ricotta impastata -- a filling for ravio

A truck driver who admits he fell asleep at the wheel while driving is now charged in an early morning accident that left a THP trooper critically injured. The driver, whose name has not been released, faces numerous charges including aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, failure to move over, and violation of due care. Inspectors are also going over the truck carefully Tuesday morning, making sure there there are no violations. Update 10:25 a.m. Semi-truck driver has been arres

The Obama administration is monitoring gasoline and diesel fuel prices in 360 U.S. cities to guard against fraud or price manipulation, according to a White House report released today. President Barack Obama said at a press conference March 6 that he asked Attorney General Eric Holder to reconstitute a special task force to ensure the government is watching for "potential speculation in the oil markets." The extent of the gasoline and diesel price monitoring is in today's report, which also sa

Clopton Capital, a semi truck financing provider, is announcing various solutions to help truckers obtain the commercial truck financing they are seeking despite the various innate difficulties associated within the commercial truck financing marketplace. Chicago, IL (PRWEB) March 12, 2012 Clopton Capital, a semi truck financing provider, is announcing various solutions to help truckers obtain the commercial truck financing they are seeking despite the various innate difficulties associate

By Lear Yann Benzinga Staff Writer March 12, 2012 7:48 AM Symbols: UNG Tags: American Trucking Association, CNBC Former Kansas governor Bill Graves estimates an additional $15 billion will be passed on to consumers from the trucking industry annually from as a result of higher fuel prices. Mr. Graves, currently the CEP of the American Trucking Association estimates the amount based on the assumption that diesel and gasoline will average 30 cents more per gallon in 2012 than they did

HASTINGS -- Cooperative Producers Inc. of Hastings and Lansing Trade Group of Overland Park, Kan., will combine their efforts for all BNSF and Union Pacific corn and soybean unit train merchandising, effective March 12. Cooperative Producers currently has BNSF unit train loading at Funk and Hastings and a U.P. unit train facility in Hayland. Lansing has a U.P. unit train receiver at Bliss, Idaho. Lansing will contribute all of its BNSF and U.P. unit train merchandising in the west to the ventur

Reuters Published Monday, Mar. 12, 2012 7:54AM EDT Last updated Monday, Mar. 12, 2012 8:02AM EDT U.S. agribusiness giant Cargill Inc. is one of the parties interested in acquiring Viterra Inc., Canada's biggest grain handler, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Sunday citing people familiar with the matter. Viterra shares surged more than 20 per cent on Friday after the company said it had received expressions of interest from unnamed third parties on a possible takeover.

OMAHA -- Gavilon Grain, L.L.C. said it plans to construct a 2.2-million-bu, slip-form concrete grain elevator with an additional 2 million bus of bunker storage capacity near Nora, Ill. The facility will feature an 8,300-foot loop track with shuttle loading capabilities of up to 80,000 bus per hour, accessing the Canadian National mainline with Burlington Northern Santa Fe interchange near Dubuque, Iowa. "We look forward to serving farmers in northwestern Illinois and southern Wisconsin," sai

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- By this time next year, Morton County should have two grain elevators less than 30 miles apart capable of loading out a 110-car shuttle train. The Bismarck Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/zTeJeL) that the super grain trains are preferred by BNSF Railway for efficiency over the long hauls, especially to coastal export markets. The railroad offers a freight discount that grain handlers can pass on to producers. Southwest Grain, a cooperative headquartered near Taylor, p