Bartlett Grain opens 50‑million‑bushel crush at Cherryvale, highlights jobs and infrastructure needs

Bartlett Grain executives told a legislative committee that the company’s new soybean crushing and processing facility in Cherryvale, Kansas, began operations Sept. 19 and is processing at scale, with the site built to handle about 50 million bushels of soybeans per year.

The presentation to the committee was led by Dustin Bavard, vice president of Bartlett Grain, and Bill Webster, vice president for Bartlett Grain. Bavard described the plant’s current output as “around 50,000,000 bushels of soybeans per year,” producing roughly 500,000,000 pounds of soybean oil, about 1,000,000 tons of soybean meal and roughly 75,000 tons of soybean hulls. Webster said the facility represents “a $440,000,000 investment.”

Why it matters: Committee members questioned company leaders about regional economic impacts, supply and logistics, and public infrastructure needs. Legislators and company officials described the plant as a new long‑term demand point for Kansas soybeans, a source of high‑paying local jobs and a potential anchor for additional investment, including plans nearby for a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) facility.

Facility and operations: Bavard said the Cherryvale site includes about 25,000 feet of track on site (about 3½ miles), can load and unload multiple rail cars simultaneously and produces “around a 100 car unit of soybean meal every 3 days.” He said the facility employs about 70 team members and that wages range “from $26 an hour to about $56 an hour.”

Bavard and Webster said the plant was sited to ensure strong rail connectivity: the facility sits on the WATCO short line with connections to Class I railroads (Canadian Pacific, Kansas City Southern, Union Pacific and BNSF), enabling both inbound soybean receipts from across Kansas and outbound shipments to U.S. Gulf ports, Mexico and other export markets. Bavard described the plant’s truck catchment as roughly a 100–150 mile radius under typical bid structures and estimated that by truck the plant pulls from a six‑county area directly.

Infrastructure and public support: Company officials described several infrastructure investments and public supports that enabled the project. Webster said state and local agencies — the Department of Commerce, the Montgomery County Commission and KDHE (Kansas Department of Health and Environment) — worked with the company during permitting. He told the committee the facility’s permitting took about six months, shorter than a typical yearlong permitting timeline on similar projects.

Webster and Bavard said Bartlett paid for a seven‑mile natural gas line (about $11 million) with Southern Star and invested in a new electrical substation with Evergy; they described an Evergy commercial development incentive that reduces rate costs for a limited period. The company said roughly $85 million in rail improvements were funded in the region (described by the presenters as state participation in rail upgrades) and that a state grant obtained with legislative support contributed to those rail efforts.

Economic effects and markets: Bartlett leaders told legislators the site adds a year‑round, local demand point for soybeans and supports local co‑ops and commercial businesses. Bavard said the plant is flexible in end markets: soybean oil currently is being used for renewable fuels, and the company invested in refining capacity to pursue food‑grade oil markets. He said the plant is pursuing food‑grade certification (a roughly 90‑day audit concluding in May) and estimated that over time “about 60 to 70%” of oil could be sold to food markets, with the remainder to renewable fuels, though he cautioned final split would be market driven.

Questions from lawmakers: Committee members asked about export risk (tariffs and trade flows), local traffic and roads, the radius of soybean sourcing, competition with other crush facilities, and whether the plant’s economics depend on federal renewable fuel incentives. Bavard and Webster said the plant was designed for flexibility and is not dependent on federal funding; Webster said the company spent an additional roughly $40 million to enable the facility to produce products suitable for both energy and food markets.

Lawmakers and the company agreed several transportation improvements remain important. Officials referenced federal‑ and state‑level projects on U.S. 160 and other corridors; the company and representatives noted an ongoing regional push to upgrade bridges and highway segments. The company said some county roads serving potential future development to the north of the plant remain unimproved and would need paving for additional industrial investments, including a proposed SAF facility on adjacent property.

Committee business: The committee did not vote on legislation at this meeting. The chair announced a hearing scheduled for Monday on House Bill 2268 and said the committee would take emergency final action on that bill after the hearing; a companion bill was on the Senate calendar. The Bartlett presentation was the substantive topic of the meeting and closed with committee members thanking the presenters.

Provenance: The article draws on the company presentation and the subsequent Q&A recorded in the committee transcript (presentation opening at committee remarks through the closing schedule for HB 2268).