Book Review: The Great Grain Elevator Incident

The Great Grain Elevator Incident book cover
The Great Grain Elevator Incident book cover

The book “The Great Grain Elevator Incident” is a young adult novel by Kevin Miller, book 4 of a series set in the fictional town of Milligan Creek. This book is not specifically about grain elevators but they are prominently featured throughout the book.

The book follows four boys as they “concoct a wild scheme to save their grain elevators”. It follows a familiar real-life theme of a grain elevator company planning to build a large concrete grain terminal outside of town that will make the town’s historic elevators obsolete.

I received this book from the author as a review copy. I enjoyed reading the book and finished it in a couple of hours. The book reads well and the story moves right along, with a few interesting turns that I did not expect. It is not necessary to read the first three books in the series.

The cover illustration was made by Kierston Vande Krats.

The book reminded me in some ways of the well-known Encyclopedia Brown series, with a group of friends working to solve a problem.

I’d recommend this book to anyone with kids in the 8-12 year range, or even for older children or those of us who are “young at heart”.

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Competition Controversy in Virden

Louis Dreyfus facility near Virden, SK, Apr 2016. Contributed by Steve Boyko.
Louis Dreyfus facility near Virden, MB, Apr 2016. Contributed by Steve Boyko.

One elevator involved in the recent sale of Louis Dreyfus facilities to Parrish & Heimbecker is being challenged by the Canadian Competition Bureau. The Bureau says the former LD facility outside Virden, Manitoba and the P&H elevator in Moosomin, SK were “close competitors”, and this purchase eliminates that competition.

Former Louis Dreyfus facility outside Virden, Manitoba, Apr 2016
Former Louis Dreyfus facility outside Virden, Manitoba, Apr 2016

Because both elevators are now owned by the same company, the Bureau says that they will no longer compete to offer farmers the best prices for wheat and canola, and that will result in lower income for local farmers.

Map of online grain elevators around Virden, Manitoba
Map of online grain elevators around Virden, Manitoba

Looking at a map of grain elevators around Virden, one can see that farmers in the Virden area have few choices for online grain elevators. The closest non P&H elevators to Virden are Cargill in Oakner, Viterra in Souris, Richardson Pioneer in Kemnay, or Cargill in Elva 80 km south.

Farmers between Moosomin and Virden appear to have no real alternative other than to drive considerably farther to one of the other elevators.

The filed notice calls on P&H to sell one of the two elevators and to not acquire any elevator in the area for 10 years unless approved by the Competition Bureau.

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