Agriculture doesn’t draw a lot of flashy news media attention here, as farmers quietly go about their work of nurturing the land and generating the plentiful produce that we American consumers have come to take for granted.

That industry sector remains a huge contributor to the Inland Northwest economy, though, and even to the Spokane metropolitan area’s well-being, with much of the revenue that it generates flowing to and through businesses here, creating a welcome ripple effect.

Though that benefit fluctuates to a large degree with constantly shifting commodity prices, some of it comes in the form of big-dollar capital investments by growers in improvements to storage, processing, and delivery facilities and systems.

One of the latest, most highly visible examples of that, as reported in the Journal’s Nov. 5 issue, is Archer Daniels Midland’s consideration of a major project to expand storage, milling, and shipping capacity at its mill complex in the industrial portion of East Spokane.

A predevelopment application on file with the city lists the project value at an eye-catching $200 million, although ADM now disputes that value. Regardless, even if the project value turned out to be just a 10th of that amount, it still would represent a sizable fresh investment in the big complex at 2301 E. Trent, which is a longtime Spokane landmark.

As currently proposed, the project would include construction of two storage and milling structures and other improvements for truck and rail transport. ADM is a Chicago-based agricultural and commodities conglomerate that bought Centennial Mills, the former owner of the mill, in 1981.

If that expansion occurs, it would be the second big grain-facility project in Spokane area and the third within about 30 miles in recent years, with those two projects totaling more than $40 million in value.

In the other Spokane County project, Waterville, Wash.-based HighLine Grain LLC, which is owned by four Eastern and Central Washington grain cooperatives, is developing a $26.4 million grain loading facility near Medical Lake.

That facility, which is expected to be completed later this year or early next year, will have a capacity of more than 2 million bushels—roughly 60,000 tons—and a 110-railcar load and unload grain elevator.

In the other project, near the town of Rosalia south of Spokane, Rosalia-based Cooperative Agricultural Producers Inc. and Genesee, Idaho-based Pacific Northwest Farmers Co-op developed a $17 million grain-handling terminal.

The two farm cooperatives began construction of that terminal on about 160 acres of land in 2012 to include more than two miles of railroad loop and to accommodate a 110-car freight shuttle train, and they started loading wheat into railcars for export there a little over two  years ago.

These recent investments reflect a long-term commitment by Inland Northwest growers to strengthen their ability to get products to market as efficiently as possible. They also show that the ag industry here is taking encouraging steps to maintain its considerable economic presence in the Spokane area.