WESTERN CANADA - Quality Grain Marketing is a full-service cash grain brokerage where they shop for their customers' grain with a multitude of buyers across Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
The company doesn't buy from the farmers but rather matches them with a buyer, working in a similar manner to an insurance broker. They issue a broker contract and help producers navigate any issues that may arise such as concerns, movement, discounts or disagreements.
Their network of buyers is a hand-picked list of processors, feedlots, feed mills and resellers that they trust and enjoy working with.
Quality Grain Marketing was formed in 2002 by Doug Chambers, based in Calgary. Around 2014, when Richard Chambers took over the business the company moved to Brandon. In 2019 when Reed McDonald, who grew up on a small grain farm in southern Alberta, bought the business, Quality Grain Marketing moved back to Alberta.
His early years gave McDonald the experience and sparked a lifelong curiosity about everything agriculture related.
When he went to the University of Lethbridge, his parents rented the farm to a neighbour, and he lost that active connection and engagement with agriculture for 10 years. But then suddenly it came knocking on his door.
McDonald worked away from home in the oil and gas industry and was getting tired of being on the road 2/3 of the year when a suggestion came to call Chambers to inquire about his grain brokerage.
Having no previous experience in buying or marketing grain, he gave it a shot to get a feel of the business.
It only took a few short months for McDonald to go full force into the business and purchase the company.
McDonald said Chambers still works for Quality Grain Marketing, but he is happy to be able to travel more with his wife and focus on marketing grain for his customers.
McDonald works out of his home and has nine brokers working full to part-time across the three Prairie provinces. The brokers are situated in Champion and Okotoks in Alberta, Moose Jaw and Yorkton in Saskatchewan, as well as Brandon and Winkler in Manitoba.
With the locations spread apart, they do not need to have a home base, and McDonald looks after the bookkeeping, contracting, customer service, administration work and anything else that comes along for the business.
The small business has grown over the years and offers other services by providing access to mills and dairies, and to products for supplemental protein primarily in Manitoba. Organizing and co-ordinating freight for customers, buyers and sellers alike, if they need grain moved.
McDonald said it is their mission to get the producers the best price on their grain.
Doing their due diligence, McDonald's no-pressure sales team does the calling and talking to take the pressure off the busy producers with price recovery. This takes 75 percent of their time.
While feed grains are their specialty, they do deal with every commodity that producers grow.
They deal with barley, wheat, oats, rye, corn, triticale, yellow and green peas, faba beans, chickpeas, lentils, mustard, canary seed, soybeans, flax and canola.
They also test and work with different grades of product.
Whatever the need may be, McDonald and his team are happy to assist.
