By Scout Nelson
Grain elevators across Nebraska are expanding storage capacity this season as farmers deliver record-breaking corn and soybean crops. At a time of global trade challenges and low commodity prices, these expansions are helping local operations handle an unusually large harvest.
In the small town of Guide Rock, semis loaded with grain rumble through Main Street toward Ely’s grain elevator, a business that has supported the community for over a century. On a peak harvest day, more than 100 truckloads of grain arrive to be tested, weighed, and stored until sold.
While the number of elevators nationwide has declined by more than 2,000 over the past 25 years, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), this long-standing Nebraska elevator continues to grow. Favorable weather and increased corn acres have led to exceptional yields, pushing the state’s storage limits.
“I’m hearing from some of my growers that they’re going through their irrigated into their dryland and they can’t tell the difference,” said the elevator’s owner. “I actually talked to a grower the other day; he said he never turned a pivot on, and he’s getting irrigated yields out of it.”
This year, a new temporary storage bunker was added to hold nearly 390,000 bushels of corn, supplementing the existing capacity of over one million bushels. “When I ordered these, they said there’s a lot of these going up throughout the country,” the owner noted.
Experts, including Robin Reid from Kansas State University, say every available space across the Midwest is being used to store grain due to limited export movement. “It’s just not moving as it was,” Reid said. “Ultimately, everything is tied to the global market.”
Despite reduced international demand—especially from China—much of Nebraska’s grain will still find markets in local ethanol plants and feedlots across northern Kansas, providing some stability for farmers and communities that depend on these elevators.
These storage expansions reflect how Nebraska’s agricultural backbone continues to adapt and thrive, ensuring local grain producers remain resilient amid economic uncertainty.
Photo Credit:gettyimages-studio2013
Categories: Nebraska, Crops, Corn, Soybeans, Harvesting