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SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)
9 Months Ended
Jul. 31, 2024
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Accounting Estimates
Accounting Estimates

Management uses estimates and assumptions in preparing these financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Those estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities, and the reported revenues and expenses. The Company uses estimates and assumptions in accounting for significant matters, among others, the carrying value of property and equipment and related impairment testing, inventory valuation, and derivative instruments. Actual results could differ from those estimates and such differences may be material to the financial statements. The Company periodically reviews estimates and assumptions and the effects of revisions are reflected in the period in which the revision is made.
Revenue Recognition
Revenue Recognition

ASC Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, further details the Company’s requirement to recognize revenue of transferred goods or services to customers in an amount which is expected to be received in exchange for those goods or services. Five steps are required as part of the guidance: 1. Identify the contract 2. Identify the performance obligations 3. Determine the transaction price 4. Allocate the transaction price to the performance obligation 5. Recognize revenue when each performance obligation is satisfied.
The Company generally sells ethanol and related products pursuant to marketing agreements. The Company’s products are shipped FOB shipping point. The Company recognizes revenue when control of goods is transferred. For ethanol sales by single manifest railcars and trucks, and distillers grains sales, control transfers when loaded. For ethanol sales by unit trains, control transfers once the last railcar of the unit train has loaded and the shipping documentation transferred to the marketer.
In accordance with the Company’s agreements for the marketing and sale of ethanol and related products, marketing fees and freight due to the marketers are deducted from the gross sales price at the time incurred. Revenue is recorded net of these marketing fees and freight as they do not provide an identifiable benefit that is sufficiently separable from the sale of ethanol and related products.

The following is a description of principal activities from which we generate revenue. Revenues from contracts with customers are recognized when control of the promised goods or services are transferred to our customers, in an amount that reflects the consideration that we expect to receive in exchange for those goods or services.
ethanol sales
modified distillers grains sales
dried distillers grains sales
corn oil sales

Disaggregation of revenue:

All revenue recognized in the statement of operations is considered to be revenue from contracts with customers. The following table depicts the disaggregation of revenue according to product line for the three and nine months ended July 31, 2024 and 2023:
Three Months Ended July 31, 2024Three Months Ended July 31, 2023Nine Months Ended July 31, 2024Nine Months Ended July 31, 2023
Revenue SourcesAmount Amount Amount
Amount
Ethanol Sales$28,835,540 $40,387,855 $78,488,696 $111,095,141 
Modified Distillers Grains Sales1,508,611 2,368,669 5,702,916 8,624,145 
Dried Distillers Grains Sales4,299,713 6,169,886 14,495,838 19,232,278 
Corn Oil Sales2,800,967 3,701,272 8,537,195 11,249,662 
Total Revenues$37,444,831 $52,627,682 $107,224,645 $150,201,226 

Contract assets and contract liabilities:

The Company receives payments from customers based upon contractual billing schedules; accounts receivable are recorded when the right to consideration becomes unconditional. Contract liabilities include payments received in advance of performance under the contract, and are realized with the associated revenue recognized under the contract.

The Company had short term contract liabilities from contracts with customers of $187,275 at July 31, 2024 and $34,599 at October 31, 2023.
Shipping Costs
Shipping Costs
Shipping costs incurred by the Company in the sale of ethanol, dried distillers grains and corn oil are not specifically identifiable and as a result, revenue from the sale of those products is recorded based on the net selling price reported to the Company from the marketer
Segment Reporting
Segment Reporting

Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise for which separate financial information is available that is evaluated regularly by the chief operating decision maker or decision making group in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance. The Company has determined that it has one reportable business segment, the manufacturing and marketing of fuel-grade ethanol and the co-products of the ethanol production process. The Company's chief operating decision maker reviews financial information of the Company as a whole for purposes of assessing financial performance and making operating decisions. Accordingly, the Company considers itself to be operating in a single industry segment.
Derivative Instruments
Derivative Instruments

Derivatives are recognized in the balance sheets and the measurement of these instruments are at fair value. In order for a derivative to qualify as a hedge, specific criteria must be met and appropriate documentation maintained. Gains and losses from derivatives that do not qualify as hedges, or are undesignated, must be recognized immediately in earnings. If the derivative does qualify as a hedge, depending on the nature of the hedge, changes in the fair value of the derivative will be either offset
against the change in fair value of the hedged assets, liabilities, or firm commitments through earnings or recognized in other comprehensive income until the hedged item is recognized in earnings.

Contracts are evaluated to determine whether the contracts are derivatives. Certain contracts that meet the definition of a derivative may be exempted as “normal purchases or normal sales”. Normal purchases and normal sales are contracts that provide for the purchase or sale of something other than a financial instrument or derivative instrument that will be delivered in quantities expected to be used or sold over a reasonable period in the normal course of business. Contracts that meet the requirements of normal purchases or sales are documented as normal and exempted from accounting as derivatives, therefore, are not marked to market in our financial statements.

The Company enters into ethanol, corn and natural gas derivatives in order to protect cash flows from fluctuations caused by volatility in prices. These derivatives are not designated as effective hedges for accounting purposes. For derivative instruments that are not accounted for as hedges, or for the ineffective portions of qualifying hedges, the change in fair value is recorded through earnings in the period of change. Ethanol derivative changes in fair market value are included in revenue. Corn and natural gas derivative changes in fair market value are included in costs of goods sold.
Carrying Value of Long-Lived Assets
Carrying Value of Long-Lived Assets

Long-lived assets, such as property and equipment, are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If circumstances require a long-lived asset group be tested for possible impairment, the Company first compares undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated by an asset group to the carrying value of the asset group. If the carrying value of the long-lived asset group is not recoverable on an undiscounted cash flow basis, impairment is recognized to the extent that the carrying value exceeds its fair value. Fair value is determined through various valuation techniques including discounted cash flow models, quoted market values and third-party independent appraisals, as considered necessary.
In accordance with the Company’s policy for evaluating impairment of long-lived assets described above, when a triggering event occurs management evaluates the recoverability of the facilities based on projected future cash flows from operations over the facilities’ estimated useful lives. In determining the projected future undiscounted cash flows, the Company makes significant assumptions concerning the future viability of the ethanol industry, the future price of corn in relation to the future price of ethanol and the overall demand in relation to production and supply capacity.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The carrying value of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and accounts payable, and other working capital items approximate fair value at July 31, 2024 due to the short maturity nature of these instruments (Level 2).
Derivative instruments are carried at fair value, based on dealer quotes and live trading levels (Note 5).
Investments
Investments

The Company has a 5% investment interest in an unlisted company, Renewable Products Marketing Group, LLC (RPMG), who markets the Company’s ethanol. The Company also has a 7% ownership interest in Lawrenceville Tank, LLC (LT), which owns and operates a trans load/tank facility near Atlanta, Georgia. These investments are flow-through entities and are being accounted for by the equity method of accounting under which the Company’s share of net income is recognized as income in the Company’s statements of operations and added to the investment account. Distributions or dividends received from the investment are treated as a reduction of the investment account. The Company consistently follows the practice of recognizing the net income (loss) from equity method investments based on the most recent reliable data. Therefore, the net income (loss) which is reported in the Company's statement of operations for the period ended July 31, 2024 is based on the investees' results of operations for the period ended June 30, 2024.

The Company has cost method of investments in cooperatives. The corresponding patronage income is recorded in costs of goods sold.
Grants
Grants
The Minnesota State Legislature established the Bioincentive Program in 2015 to encourage commercial-scale production of advanced biofuels, renewable chemicals, and biomass thermal energy through production incentive payments. Eligible producers of cellulosic ethanol may receive $0.16 per gallon of cellulosic ethanol produced subject to program funding limitations. The Company received awards from the Bioincentive Program of approximately $92,000, recorded in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 in other income, $116,000, recorded in the second quarter of fiscal 2024 in other income, and $17,000, recorded in the third quarter of fiscal 2024 in other income. The Company received awards from the Bioincentive Program of approximately $100,000, recorded in the first quarter of fiscal 2023 in other income, and $81,000, recorded in the second quarter of fiscal 2023 in other income.