USA-based Consolidated Grain and Barge Co. (CGB), a leader in the grain and transportation industries since 1970 and operates 95 grain facilities across the Midwest, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to lease nine facilities located in the heart of the deep south from Big River Rice and Grain, a wholly owned subsidiary of Agspring. “We announced a managerial services agreement last year, and we are excited to provide even more service to the area’s producers through lease agreements in Eudora and Parkdale, AR, in addition to Pioneer, Dunn, Monticello, Hollybrook, Mer Rouge, Crowville and Lake Providence, LA,” said Greg Beck, Senior Vice President, CGB.“We are pleased that area producers will directly benefit from this transaction with CGB through their direct ties to the export markets,” said Agspring CEO Mark Beemer. “This transaction allows Agspring to focus on our value-added businesses including Thresher Artisan Wheat, Firebird Artisan Mills and Agforce Transport Services.” Big River Rice and Grain, formed in 2013 through acquisition, is headquartered in Pioneer, Louisiana, centrally located among facilities in Dunn, Mer Rouge, Monticello, Hollybrook, Lake Providence, and Crowville, Louisiana, as well as Parkdale and Eudora, Arkansas. The company provides origination, storage and handling, logistics, marketing and risk management for corn, soybeans, wheat, rice and milo throughout the region for producers, processors and customers.