Grain Co-Ops Elect To Merge

Ritzville Warehouse Co. and Washtucna Grain Growers Inc. Monday voted overwhelming to merge into a single cooperative under the Ritzville name.

By a vote of 337 to 54, farmers from both cooperatives agreed to merge Jan. 1, increasing Ritzville Warehouse’ size to 730 members in Adams, Grant and Lincoln counties.

The deal rescues the assets of 65-year-old Washtucna, which lost $26,000 last year.

It also expands the amount of grain and storage that Ritzville Warehouse’ 17 full-time employees will handle. The combined company will have storage for 9.6 million bushels of grain.

Vernon Regennitter, manager of Ritzville Warehouse, said the company Saturday returned $94,500 in dividend checks to its members, reflecting the results of the fiscal year ended April 30, 1995. The cooperative posted a $575,000 profit on $28.1 million in revenue for the year, he said.

, DataTimes