Grain Origination Intern
Hello, my name is Christian Fields. I am a junior at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, majoring in Agribusiness with a minor in accounting. I’m from Seward, Nebraska, and was involved in FBLA and multiple sports during high school. In college, I am a member of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity. In my free time, I enjoy golfing, hunting, and fishing.
This summer, I am interning in the Grain Origination department under the mentorship of Sam Johnson. I have already learned more about the grain markets and am committed to learning something new every day. My goal is to come to work each day with a great attitude and to demonstrate my strong work ethic.
I decided that I wanted to work at Aurora Cooperative because of the amazing things I’ve heard regarding the cooperative. I really wanted to learn more about the grain markets and what cooperatives as a whole can offer farmers. I have always loved the stock market ever since I was old enough to understand how it works, so I thought to myself that I might as well get the best of both worlds and use my interest in the stock market & agriculture to learn more about grain origination. I wanted to get into the ag field due to my grandpa being a row crop and cattle farmer. I remember going to the farm as a kid and wanting to learn all about grandpa’s operation, and at Aurora Cooperative, I get that opportunity to learn about every single side of the business we have, from grain origination to the agronomy side of things as well!
I have had the opportunity to do many things this summer and have many more plans. It was interesting to me to see how a train gets loaded when we send a shuttle out on the rail. My day to day includes working on projects, going out to locations to see different grain bins, and looking at commodity markets, and every day is always going to be different. I have had a great summer so far and am excited to see what the rest of the summer holds for me!
I have gained so much experience in my summer internship! I never thought that I would be able to learn so much regarding the commodity markets and how we buy and sell grain as a cooperative. I am really looking forward to continuing to gain knowledge about different markets and logistics for freight. I am very grateful for all of the amazing people that I get to work with and develop relationships with every day! My overall experience has been outstanding, and I would recommend anyone interested in a cooperative to give it a try.