Mr. Ellsworth started the company in June 2004. He raised $200 Million in debt and equity and constructed the first two ethanol plants owned and operated by the company. The first two plants were built in the middle of the least expensive corn in the country, which made Green Plains the lowest cost producer in the nation as soon as it commenced operations at its first two plants. The locations of the first two plants allowed the company to purchase corn for approximately $0.26 cents a bushel less than its nearest competitors in Nebraska, which were on the west side of the Missouri River. All the corn grown west of the Missouri is irrigated, while corn on the eastern side is grown from rainfall, which is why the price of corn in Iowa is lower. This difference in the price of corn was one of the primary reasons the company was able to purchase several plants out of bankruptcy after the financial crash in 2008 and 2009. Green Plains is currently one of the largest ethanol producers in the world.