The Andersons

The Andersons, Inc. is a diversified American agribusiness headquartered in Maumee, Ohio. Established in 1947 by Harold and Margaret Anderson as The Andersons Truck Terminal, the company initially focused on grain transportation, storage, and rail transfer operations. Over time, it expanded from a regional grain-handling enterprise into a group serving several connected parts of the agricultural and industrial supply chain. The company's principal activities have centered on commodity merchandising, renewable fuels, plant nutrients, and rail. Its grain operations involve the handling, storage, merchandising, and movement of agricultural commodities through elevators, terminals, rail networks, river facilities, and Great Lakes infrastructure. The plant-nutrient business produces and distributes fertilizer and related products for agricultural, professional turf, and other specialty markets. The company also participates in ethanol production and related renewable-fuels activities, linking its agricultural merchandising capabilities with demand for corn-based fuel feedstocks. Its rail operations include railcar leasing, fleet management, maintenance, and repair services. The Andersons developed through repeated investment in physical infrastructure. During the 1950s and 1960s, it added grain terminals, fertilizer-blending capabilities, corn-milling activities, large-scale storage, and Great Lakes shipping capacity. It also entered lawn and turf products. In the 1970s and 1980s, the company expanded its grain and fertilizer footprint across the U.S. Midwest, added river and Gulf-port connections, and opened additional retail locations. In the 1990s, it entered rail leasing and developed repair facilities while continuing to acquire and build grain and liquid-storage assets. The company first listed its shares on NASDAQ in 1996. The 2000s brought a further shift toward larger-scale agribusiness and infrastructure. The Andersons entered ethanol, helped develop three ethanol plants, enlarged its rail fleet and repair network, and expanded turf and plant-nutrient activities. It also operated a retail business for many years, including stores in Ohio and a specialty food market, but later concluded that retail no longer fit its strategic priorities. In 2017, the company announced the planned closure of its remaining retail stores and subsequently exited retail, concentrating on grain, rail, ethanol, and plant nutrients. Today, The Andersons is positioned as an integrated agricultural and industrial-services company rather than a consumer-facing retailer. Its businesses are connected by agricultural commodity flows, transportation assets, fertilizer demand, and renewable-fuels production. The company is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol ANDE. The supplied reference material reports 2023 sales of approximately $14.75 billion and net profit of approximately $101.19 million; those figures are retained only with their stated 2023 context and source attribution in the encyclopedia record.

The Andersons began in 1947 when Harold and Margaret Anderson established The Andersons Truck Terminal, commonly abbreviated as ATT. The original business served the grain industry through transportation, storage, grain elevators, and rail transfer infrastructure. This foundation shaped the company's later identity: rather than operating only as a producer or retailer, The Andersons developed around the movement, storage, processing, and marketing of agricultural commodities. During the 1950s, the company expanded its network of grain terminals and opened its first retail outlet, The Andersons Warehouse Market. It also began blending fertilizer and moved into corn milling. These additions broadened the company from logistics into agricultural inputs and processing. In the 1960s, The Andersons invested in major handling infrastructure, including what the reference material describes as the first deep-water grain-loading facility on the U.S. side of the Great Lakes. It also operated the first U.S. elevator able to load 100-car trains in Champaign, Illinois, and developed large steel-tank grain storage in Maumee. During the same decade, the company entered lawn-products activities. The 1970s brought further growth in grain logistics and regional distribution. The company expanded a river elevator, shipped grain by rail to Gulf ports, and built a grain elevator and corn mill in Delphi, Indiana. Its retail presence also grew, with the original Maumee store replaced by a larger facility. In the 1980s, The Andersons added a liquid-fertilizer facility on the Maumee River, opened stores in Toledo and Columbus, and expanded grain and fertilizer infrastructure across Indiana and Michigan. Fertilizer facilities were added or developed in Delphi, Poneto, and Dunkirk, Indiana, and Webberville, Michigan. The company also formed The Andersons Management Corporation. In the 1990s, The Andersons entered the rail-leasing business and built a railcar repair shop in Maumee. It added a retail store in Lima, Ohio, and acquired grain and liquid-storage facilities in several Indiana locations, including Clymers, Logansport, Seymour, North Manchester, and Waterloo. On February 20, 1996, the company was first listed on NASDAQ. Around this period, it reached approximately $1 billion in sales, according to the supplied reference material. The 2000s marked a further move toward diversified agribusiness and industrial infrastructure. The Andersons entered ethanol and oversaw construction of three ethanol plants. Its rail segment expanded through additional railcars and repair facilities in South Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi. The company also obtained ISO certifications for its liquid plant-nutrient facilities and continued developing turf products. During this period it issued a two-for-one stock split and a follow-on offering. Retail diversification continued temporarily with the opening of a specialty food market in Sylvania, Ohio, in 2007; that location closed in 2016. The company's retail strategy was ultimately reversed. On January 15, 2017, The Andersons announced that it would cease retail operations and close stores in Maumee, Toledo, and Columbus during the second quarter. The final retail closures occurred on June 3, 2017. The reference material states that retail had generated an approximately $20 million loss over eight years and employed nearly 1,050 people. The exit redirected management attention and capital toward grain, rail, ethanol, and plant nutrients. The company has also disclosed accounting corrections. In 2003 it announced a restatement relating to accounting for a five-year grain-marketing agreement after determining that reported earnings did not comply with a new accounting pronouncement. The reference material says total income was unchanged. In 2005, it restated its statement of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30 because of a preparation-procedure error. In its present form, The Andersons is an active public company organized around agricultural commodities, crop nutrients, renewable fuels, and rail services. Its historical development reflects a recurring strategy of linking grain flows with storage, transportation, processing, agricultural inputs, and related infrastructure. The supplied reference material reports 2023 sales of approximately $14.75 billion and net profit of approximately $101.19 million, with both figures described as lower than the preceding year.

• 2023

  Reported annual sales and profit

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  The supplied reference material reports sales of approximately $14.75 billion and net profit of approximately $101.19 million for 2023.

• 2017

  Retail exit completed

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  The Andersons closed its remaining retail stores on June 3 and refocused on grain, rail, ethanol, and plant nutrients.

• 2000

  Entry into ethanol

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  The company entered the ethanol business and oversaw construction of three ethanol plants during the decade.

• 1996

  First NASDAQ listing

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  The Andersons became a publicly traded company on NASDAQ on February 20, 1996.

• 1960

  Great Lakes and large-scale grain infrastructure expanded

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  The company added deep-water Great Lakes loading capacity, 100-car-train loading capability, and large steel-tank storage in Maumee, while entering lawn products.

• 1950

  Expansion into grain terminals and agricultural inputs

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  During the decade, the company expanded grain terminals, opened its first retail store, began fertilizer blending, and entered corn milling.

• 1947

  Company founded as The Andersons Truck Terminal

  [1]The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org

  Harold and Margaret Anderson established the business to provide grain transportation, storage, and rail-transfer services.

An integrated North American agribusiness and industrial-services company focused on agricultural commodities, crop nutrients, renewable fuels, and rail infrastructure.

• Agricultural commodities · 1947

  Grain merchandising and storage

  The Andersons' original and continuing business area involves receiving, storing, transporting, processing, and merchandising grain. The network has historically included country and terminal elevators, rail-transfer facilities, river infrastructure, Great Lakes loading assets, and connections to Gulf ports. This segment gives the company a physical role in moving agricultural commodities from producing regions to processors, exporters, and other end markets.

• Agricultural inputs · 1950

  Plant nutrients and fertilizers

  The plant-nutrient business grew from early fertilizer blending into a broader set of liquid and other nutrient products. Facilities in the Midwest supported agricultural customers as well as specialty turf and lawn markets. The company expanded its liquid-fertilizer footprint across Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan and obtained ISO certifications for its liquid plant-nutrient facilities during the 2000s.

• Turf and lawn care · 1960

  Turf and lawn products

  The Andersons entered lawn products in the 1960s and later expanded its turf-products activities. These offerings complement the company's plant-nutrient capabilities and serve professional turf, lawn-care, and related specialty markets. The reference material does not identify specific current product names.

• Renewable fuels · 2000

  Ethanol and renewable fuels

  The company entered ethanol during the 2000s and oversaw construction of three ethanol plants. The business connects The Andersons' grain-merchandising expertise with the renewable-fuels market, using agricultural commodities as feedstocks and participating in a major downstream application for corn production.

• Rail transportation services · 1990

  Railcar leasing and services

  The Andersons entered rail leasing in the 1990s and expanded its fleet and repair network in subsequent years. Its rail activities have included leasing, railcar maintenance, and repair facilities in the Midwest and southeastern United States. Rail remains strategically connected to the company's grain and industrial logistics businesses.

• Retail · 1950

  Retail stores

  The Andersons operated retail stores for decades, beginning with The Andersons Warehouse Market and later adding locations in Toledo, Columbus, Lima, and other Ohio communities. It also operated a specialty food market in Sylvania. The company announced a retail exit in 2017 and closed its remaining retail doors on June 3 of that year.

• 2017

  Exit from retail operationsStrategy

  Background

  The company determined that its retail activities were underperforming and that greater strategic emphasis should be placed on grain, railcar, ethanol, and plant-nutrient businesses.

  Action taken

  The Andersons announced the closure of stores in Maumee, Toledo, and Columbus, Ohio, and completed the retail shutdown on June 3, 2017.

  Aftermath

  The company returned its focus to agribusiness and industrial infrastructure. The supplied material attributes approximately $20 million in losses over eight years to the retail operation and says nearly 1,050 employees were affected.

  Retail losses over eight years. $20 million loss (Eight years through 2017)

  Source

• 2005

  Cash-flow statement correctionOther

  Background

  The company identified an error in the procedures used to prepare its statement of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2005.

  Action taken

  The Andersons restated the relevant statement of cash flows.

  Aftermath

  The company corrected the financial-statement presentation; no broader consequence is specified in the supplied material.

  Source

• 2003

  Restatement related to grain-marketing accountingOther

  Background

  The company determined that earnings reported under a five-year grain-marketing agreement did not conform to a new accounting pronouncement.

  Action taken

  The Andersons announced a restatement covering 2002 and the first quarter of 2003. The supplied reference material states that total income remained unchanged.

  Aftermath

  The correction addressed the accounting presentation and timing of the reported earnings.

  Source

1. 1The Andersonsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2The Andersons official websiteandersonsinc.com