Farmers in Western Canada loaded 12,784 producer cars during the 2010-11 crop year, the second highest number ever recorded, says the Canadian Wheat Board.
Last year’s loadings fell just short of the record set in the 2008-09 crop year.
That year, producers filled nearly 13,000 rail cars at producer car loading sites across the Prairies.
Producer car use in the West has increased dramatically during recent years.
By using producer cars, farmers can load rail cars at designated loading sites and move them on short-line railways, instead of hauling grain longer distances to elevators on main line track.
By loading hopper cars themselves, producers avoid elevation fees and reduce transportation costs.
Savings vary, but shipping costs for a car of board grain can range from $1,000 to $1,500, or more.
