Black Bears, Yellow Corn, and Grain Marketing Hibernation

Resisting the urge to float the current of all things holly and jolly, I have found a more unique, if not better, analogy for describing some of our producers in the current environment than convincing everyone to be the Santa Claus bearing bushels for all the good end users of the world; black bears and hibernation.

Did you know that there are five stages of hibernation in the annual life of a bear? Incredibly, these stages correspond with many producers and their grain marketing efforts. Here’s the proof:

Stage 1: Hibernation-beginning in the late fall, this continuous dormancy is accompanied by reduced signs of life across all black bear bodily systems. Once harvest is over and bins are full, many producers will call it a wrap for the season and head to the shop, to tinker away until the pre-planting vacation to the Dominican Republic.

Stage 2: Walking Hibernation-the few immediate weeks following emergence, the black bear will slowly adjust its processes to the routines of the upcoming summer. As land payments and equipment notes come due in the spring, farmers typically begin to move a little grain and make sure the augers still work.

Stage 3: Normal Activity-from spring green up to mid summer, the black bear will resume consuming the appropriate amount of calories to ensure success in mating rituals for species survival. Once planting is done, it is vital that grain move in between sprayings and spreadings for the continued survival of the hired hand’s employment.

Stage 4: Hyperphagia-much like us southerners hoard milk, bread and toilet paper ahead of a snow dusting, the black bear essentially goes on a bender of grubs, berries and water to bulk up for the pending hibernation. Time-lapse satellite footage shows on farm grain bins across the country spewing grain like miniature Mt. Vesuvius’, purging their contents to make space for the forthcoming crop.

Stage 5: Fall Transition-a slowdown of biological activities in preparation for impending hibernation when the black bear eats less and becomes increasingly lethargic. As harvest fires up, the producer will fill the bins yet again, only selling what is absolutely necessary to just be able to close the bottle cap, completing the cycle once more.

Don’t let your customers continue their black bear ways.