MINOT, ND (KXNET) — Load up and move out. That's what the Minot Intermodal Facility has been doing for the last four years for trains carrying containers of North Dakota products. Starting back in October of 2020 empty trains were able to be loaded with agricultural commodities from North Dakota farmers to ports across the United States. Since the opening of the facility, the general manager of Modal Rail Group, Chris Rehder, says the facility has been a game changer for North Dakota farmers. "It gives them access to markets that elevators don't have access to we can reach any port in the world from Minot, North Dakota from this facility," said Rehder. A 100th train is no small feat. As the 100th train to come out of this Intermodal Facility, it's close to 12 million mounds in total weight and will be making its way to Seattle, Washington. The Intermodal Facility has allowed for a variety of farm goods to be shipped and later delivered all across the country that many people often forget about. Avid readers load up at the library during fall used book sale "We ship agriculture commodities whether it's wheat, soybeans, peas, lentils but we also distribute by-products like dry distillery drain which are remnants of the corn that they make ethanol out of it. We ship beet pulp pellets which is what's left of sugar beets after they get the sugar out and dry it out and shoot it into pellets," said Rehder. While 100 trains is a large milestone, Minot Chamber EDC Economic Development Specialist Mark Lyman says that in the future they hope that the facility will be able to ship multiple trains a week. "Ultimately we want to have multiple trains a week coming out of our facility. Initially, when we started four years ago now, we were shooting for one to two trains a month, now we are up to three to five trains a month and so the hope is to get up to two trains a week which would be a great goal to have in a year or two," said Lyman. Lyman says the facility has had big financial implications for farmers that have helped the economy. "So instead of going out of state with it, they can keep their product in state. It gets shipped out of here and it gets brought to a vessel in four or five days, six days then it goes to international markets in a couple of weeks before this facility existed it could be anywhere from 30 to 45 to 60 days before your product went from North Dakota to the end buyer in another country," said Lyman. Rehder says the modal facility is expected to ship its next 100 trains in less than two years. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Today's Top Stories SIGN UP NOW