WEST BEND – MaxYield Cooperative announced March 31 it has signed an agreement to purchase seven facilities in Iowa from The Andersons, Inc.

“We are excited about the opportunity to expand our presence in an area already served by MaxYield,” said Howard Haas, MaxYield Cooperative board chairman. “MaxYield currently has facilities in 17 rural communities and has 1,700 members, many of which will have increased access to grain, agricultural inputs and services as a result of this transaction.”

Pat Bowe, The Andersons chief executive officer, said “We have referenced performance issues in our western grain assets during several recent investor calls.

“We anticipate this sale will improve our prospects and provide a pathway to profitability for this area of our business.

“We believe MaxYield will capably continue to serve the needs of the growers in this region and make good use of these assets in Iowa.”

The Andersons acquired the seven grain and agronomy locations as a part of its 2012 acquisition from Green Plains Grain Co.

The Tennessee assets acquired during that same transaction will remain a part of The Andersons. This transaction does not divest or otherwise involve The Andersons’ ethanol facility or recently-acquired Nutra-Flo facilities in Iowa.