Today Agspring announced the formation of Big River Rice and Grain, a new grain storage and merchandising entity operating in Louisiana. As part of the formation of the entity, Agspring also announced the acquisition of Tubbs Rice Dryers and Raley Brothers, two established agri-businesses located in Northeastern Louisiana.
"We are excited what our presence as part of the Agspring family will mean for our producer clients and partners in Louisiana," said Larry Tubbs, CEO of Big River Rice and Grain. "Our desire is to provide excellent operating infrastructure and a stable partner who is committed to handling transactions quickly."
Big River will feature expanded operations including a new barge loader and expanded overall capacity.
"I think the fact that we closed these deals right before the harvest and yet experienced no interruption in service shows what our producers and partners can expect from Big River," said Mark Raley who heads business development for the company.
Operations will continue to be managed locally, while Big River will benefit from corporate support, national supply chain planning and financial backing from Agspring headquartered in Kansas City.
"We have to think globally but, at the same time, bring concrete benefits to the farmer down the road," said Brad Clark, President of Agspring. "Trust in our operating companies, our growers and customers is built around a common purpose to help small to mid-sized agribusinesses to compete in an increasingly global marketplace."
Company Background
Tubbs Rice Dryers, a long-standing family-owned elevator operation, has facilities in Mer Rouge and Pioneer, Louisiana, handling rice, corn, soybeans, soft red winter wheat and sorghum. Tubbs expanded operations in 2011, adding storage separations, drying and handling capacity to receive 60,000 bushels per hour and dry 16,000 bushels per hour.
Raley Brothers, a third generation family-owned agribusiness has served the farmers of North Louisiana for more than half a century as a retailer and grain merchant. Today the company operates a grain merchandising business with operations across six locations.
Big River local headquarters are in Pioneer, Louisiana, centrally located among facilities in Delhi, Mer Rouge, Monticello, Lake Providence and Crowville, Louisiana.
