Paxton soybean collection back up and running

PAXTON Ill. (WCIA) — Some Central Illinois farmers had to put a stop to their crop drop-offs. The Ludlow Co-Op Elevator Company was at capacity on soybeans in Paxton.

They had to stop receiving beans three days ago, but they’re back up and running as of Monday morning.

“We pride ourselves on not having to shut down unless it’s absolutely necessary,” Branden Kruse, Ludlow Co-Op Paxton facility manager, said. “We take a lot of pride in the big receiving capacity we have at this location.”

Kruse said it’s been an especially fast harvest season. The lack of rain has sped up the process.

That’s partly why the co-op reached capacity. This morning, a train arrived and has been filling up with beans ever since.

111 cars will be filled — each with almost 4000 bushels of beans.

“Most harvests you end up with a rain delay here or there,” Kruse said. “The beans get too wet to cut, [or] they’re not fit to cut. This year we’ve had an exceptionally long dry spell and probably really good bean yields, as well, so big yields and no weather delays we’re going to fill up really fast.”

Kruse said this is the busiest week the co-op has had all season. The train was scheduled to fill up with more than 400,000 bushels of beans by 7 p.m. Monday night. Two more trains will arrive Tuesday and Wednesday for more bean collection.

“Shutting down on beans, especially, is really hard because the later the season goes, it’s a lot harder for the farmer to get after the soybeans,” Kruse said. “So, we want to stay open as long as we can for as many hours as we can.”

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com.