Deuel County Cenex of Toronto, South Daktoa recently renewed its membership with Growth Energy. Formed in 1936, the farm supply cooperative has five locations in three different towns. Petroleum, agronomy, feed and grain are their main products sold.
According to the General Manager Harry Mewherter, Deuel County Cenex’s primary interest in joining Growth Energy Market Development was to develop and sell the products farmers are growing in the United States. “We need to be more self-sufficient on energy. I believe Growth Energy Market Development will achieve this goal,” noted Mewherter.
Deuel County Cenex decided to initially install blender pumps because their customers were asking for E85. They wanted to offer more choice for ethanol blends, so instead of just offering E85, they decided to offer consumers exactly what they were looking for -- more choices. Deuel County Cenex was among the first blender pumps offered in the state of South Dakota .
The group voiced their concerns on the challenges the ethanol industry has is consumer education. They noted that the public needs to be more educated on the value of burning ethanol and the environmental benefits. “We need more refueling sites that carry E85 and mid level blends in more states,” said Mewherter.
Mewherter recognizes the importance of maintaining the connections between fuel providers, farmers, and the ethanol industry, “We want to support the farmers who are growing this product. We are located relatively close to an ethanol plant, so blender pumps are a great way to support our local communities. Our customers were looking for more choices and now that they have them, they appreciate those choices.”
Deuel County Cenex has two blender pump fueling locations in South Dakota. The Cenex located at 375 Main Avenue in Toronto offers blends of E10, E15, E20, E30 E40 and E85. The blender pump in Clear Lake located at 222 3rd Ave S offers blends of E 10, E20, E30, E40 and E85.
