UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTIONSecurities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) OF THE ACT:of the Act:

Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrantRegistrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit and post such files).

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large"large accelerated filer,” “accelerated" "accelerated filer,” “smaller" "smaller reporting company,”" and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the Registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).

State the aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the price at which the common equity was last sold, or the average bid and asked price of such common equity, as of the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter:

The Registrant has no voting or non-voting common equity (the Registrant is a member cooperative).

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the Registrant’s classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date:

The Registrant has no common stock outstanding.

None.

CHS Inc. (referred to herein as “CHS,” “we”"CHS," "we," "us" or “us”"our") is the nation’s leading integrated agricultural cooperative, providing grain, foods and energy resources to businesses and consumers on a global basis. As a cooperative, we are owned by farmers and ranchers and their member cooperatives (referred to herein as “members”"members") across the United States. We also have preferred shareholders that own shares of our five series of preferred stock, which are each listed and traded on the NASDAQNasdaq Global Select Market. We buy commodities from and provide products and services to individual agricultural producers, local cooperatives and other companies (including our members and other non-member customers), both domestically and internationally. We provide a wide variety of products and services, ranging from initial agricultural inputs such as fuels, farm supplies, crop nutrients and crop protection products to agricultural outputs that include grains and oilseeds, grain and oilseed processing, renewable fuels and food products. A portion of our operations are conducted through equity investments and joint ventures whose operating results are not fully consolidated with our results; rather, a proportionate share of the income or loss from those equity investments and joint ventures is included as a component inof our net income underusing the equity method of accounting. For the year ended August 31, 2017,2019, our total revenues were $31.9 billion and net income attributable to CHS Inc. was $127.9$829.9 million.

We have aligned our segments based on an assessment of how our businesses operate and the products and services they sell. Our Energy segment derives its revenues through refining, wholesaling and retailing of petroleum products. Our Ag segment derives its revenues through the origination and marketing of grain, including:including service activities conducted at export terminals; through wholesale agronomy sales of crop nutrients;nutrient and crop protection products; from sales of soybean meal, soybean refined oil and soyflour products; through the production and marketing of renewable fuels; and through retail sales of petroleum and agronomy products, processed sunflowers, feed and farm supplies. Our Ag segment also records equity income from our grain export joint venture and other investments. Our Nitrogen Production segment consists solely of and came into existence upon, our equity method investment in CF Industries Nitrogen, LLC (“("CF Nitrogen”), which was completed in February 2016. The addition of our Nitrogen Production segment did not have any impact on historically reported segment results and balances. Our Foods segment consists solely of our equity method investment in Ventura Foods, LLC (“Ventura Foods”Nitrogen"). Prior to August 31, 2016, our equity method investment in Ventura Foods was reported as a component of Corporate and Other and, accordingly, reported segment results and balances prior to that time have been revised to reflect the addition of our Foods segment. We include ourOur other business operations, primarily our financing and hedging businesses, are included in Corporate and Other because of the nature of their products and services, as well as the relative amount of revenues offor those businesses. These businesses primarily includePrior to its sale on May 4, 2018, our financing, insurance hedgingbusiness was also included in Corporate and other service activities related to crop production.Other. In addition, our non-consolidated wheat milling operations, which are conducted through non-consolidatedand food production and distribution joint ventures are included in Corporate and Other.

Our earnings from cooperative business are allocated to members (and to a limited extent to non-members with which we have agreed to do business on a patronage basis) based on the volume of business they do with us. We allocate these earnings to our patrons in the form of patronage refunds (which are also called patronage dividends), which may be in cash, patrons’ equities (in the form of capital equity certificates), or both. Patrons' equities may be redeemed over time solely at the discretion of our Board of Directors. Earnings derived from non-members, which are not treated as patronage, are taxed at federal and state statutory corporate rates and are retained by us as unallocated capital reserve.reserves. We also receive patronage refunds from the cooperatives in which we are a member, if those cooperatives have earnings to distribute and if we qualify for patronage refunds from them.

Our origins date back to the early 1930s with the founding of our predecessor companies, Cenex, Inc. and Harvest States Cooperatives. CHS Inc. emerged as the result of the merger of those two entities in 1998, and is headquartered in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota.

Overview

Operations

Our Laurel Montana facilityrefinery processes approximately 55,00061,000 barrels of crude oil per day to produce refined products that consist of approximately 43% gasoline, 41% diesel fuel and other distillates, 8% asphalt, and 7% petroleum coke and 1% other products. Refined fuels produced at our Laurel Montana refinery are available:available via rail cars and via the Yellowstone Pipeline to western Montana terminals and to Spokane, Washington; south via common carrier pipelines to Wyoming terminals and Denver, Colorado; and east via our wholly-owned Cenex Pipeline, LLC, to Glendive, Montana, and Minot, Prosper and Fargo, North Dakota.

Our McPherson Kansas refinery processes approximately 100,000110,000 barrels of crude oil per day to produce refined products that consist of approximately 55%52% gasoline, 38%42% diesel fuel and other distillates, and 3%2% propane and 4% other products. Approximately 22% of the refined fuelsThese products are either loaded into trucks at the McPherson Kansas refinery or shipped via its proprietary products pipeline to our terminal in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The remaining refined fuel products are shippedcommon carrier pipelines to other markets via common carrier pipelines.

Products and Services

Our Energy segment produces and sells (primarily wholesale) gasoline, diesel fuel, propane, asphalt, lubricants and other related products, and also provides transportation services. In addition to selling the products refined at our Laurel Montana, and McPherson Kansas refineries, we purchase refined petroleum products from third parties. For fiscal 2017,2019, we obtained approximately 68%70% of the refined petroleum products we sold from our Laurel Montana and McPherson Kansas refineries and approximately 32%30% from third parties.

Sales and Marketing; Customers

We market approximately 80% of our refined fuel products to members, with the balance sold to non-members. Sales are made wholesale to member cooperatives and through a network of independent retailers that operate convenience stores under the Cenex® trade name.Cenex brand. We sold approximately 1.61.5 billion gallons of gasoline and approximately 1.81.7 billion gallons of diesel fuel in fiscal 2017.2019. We also blend, package and wholesale auto and farm machinery lubricants to both members and non-members. We are one of the nation’s largest propane wholesalers based on revenues. Most of the propane sold in rural areas is for heating and agricultural usage. Annual sales volumes of propane vary greatly depending on weather patterns and crop conditions.

Industry; Competition

The petroleum business is highly cyclical. Demand for crude oil and energy products is driven by the condition of local and worldwide economies, local and regional weather patterns and taxation relative to other energy sources, which can significantly affect the price of refined fuel products. Our Energy segment generally experiences higher volumes and profitability in certain operating areas, such as refined products, in the spring, summer and early fall when gasoline and diesel fuel usage by our agricultural customers is highest and is subject to domestic supply and demand forces. Other energy products, such as propane, maygenerally experience higher volumes and profitability during the winter heating and crop dryingcrop-drying seasons. More fuel-efficient equipment, reduced crop tillage, depressed prices for crops, weather conditions and government programs whichthat encourage idle acres may all reduce demand for our energy products.

We market refined fuel products in five principal geographic areas. The first area includes the Midwest and northern plains.Northern Plains. Competition at the wholesale level in this area includes major oil companies, as well as independent refiners and wholesale brokers/suppliers. This area has a robust spot market and is influenced by the large refinery center along the gulf coast.Gulf Coast.

To the east of the Midwest and northern plainsNorthern Plains is another unique marketing area. This area centers near Chicago, Illinois, and includes eastern Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. In this area, we principally compete with the major oil companies, as well as independent refineriesrefiners and wholesale brokers/suppliers.

Another market area is located south of Chicago, Illinois. Most of this area includes Arkansas, Missouri and the northern part of Texas. Competition in this area includes the major oil companies and independent refiners. This area is principally supplied from the Gulf Coast refinery center and is also driven by a strong spot market that reacts quickly to changes in the international and national supply balance.

Another geographic area includes Montana, western North Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Colorado and western South Dakota. Competition at the wholesale level in this area includes the major oil companies and independent refineries.

The last area includes much of Washington and Oregon. We compete with the major oil companies in this area. This area is known for volatile prices and an active spot market.

Overview

Our Ag segment includes our global grain marketing, country operations, crop nutrients,wholesale agronomy, processing and food ingredients and renewable fuels businesses. These businesses work together to facilitate the production, purchase, sale and eventual use of grain and other agricultural products within the United States, as well as internationally. In fiscal 2017,2019, revenues in our Ag segment were $25.6$24.7 billion after elimination of intersegment revenues, consisting principally of grain sales.

Operations

Products and Services

Our Ag segment provides local cooperatives and farmers with the inputs and services they need to produce grain and raise livestock. These include seed, crop nutrients, crop protection products, animal feed, animal health products, refined fuels and propane. We also buy and merchandise grain in both domestic and international markets. With a portion of the grain we purchase we produce renewable fuels, including ethanol and DDGS. We also produce refined oils, meal and soyflour at our processing facilities.

Sales and Marketing; Customers

Our Ag segment provides products and services to a wide range of customers, primarily in the United States. These customers include member and non-member producers, local cooperatives, elevators, grain dealers, grain processors and crop nutrient retailers. We sell our edible oils and soyflour to food companies. The meal we produce is sold to integrated livestock producers and feed mills. The ethanol and DDGS we produce are sold throughout the United States and intoto various international locations.

Industry; Competition

Many of the business activities in our Ag segment are highly seasonal and, consequently, the operating results for our Ag segment will typically vary throughout the year. For example, our country operations business generally experiences higher volumes and crop nutrients businessesincome during the fall harvest and spring planting seasons and our agronomy business generally experienceexperiences higher volumes and income during the spring planting season and in the fall, which corresponds to harvest.season. In addition, our Ag segment operations may be adversely affected by relative levels of supply and demand, both domestic and international, commodity price levels and transportation costs and conditions. Supply is affected by weather conditions, plant disease, insect damage, acreage planted and government regulations and policies. Demand may be affected by foreign governments and their programs, relationships of foreign countries with the United States, the affluence of foreign countries, acts of war, currency exchange fluctuations and substitution of commodities. Demand may also be affected by changes in eating habits, population growth, the level of per capita consumption of some products and the level of renewable fuels production.production levels.

Overview

    

Our Nitrogen Production segment consists solely of our 11.4%approximate 10% membership interest (based on product tons) in CF Nitrogen, our strategic venture with CF Industries Holdings, Inc. ("CF Industries"). In February 2016, in connection with our investment in CF Nitrogen, we entered into an 80-year supply agreement with CF Nitrogen that entitles us to purchase up to 1.1 million tons of granular urea and 580,000 tons of urea ammonium nitrate (“UAN”("UAN") annually for ratable delivery. We account for our CF Nitrogen investment using the hypothetical liquidation at book value method and on August 31, 2017,2019, our investment was approximately $2.8$2.7 billion.

Our investment in CF Nitrogen positions us and our members for long-term dependable fertilizer supply, supply chain efficiency and production economics. In addition, the ability to source product from CF Nitrogen production facilities under our supply agreement benefits our members and customers through strategically positioned access to essential fertilizer products.

Operations

CF Nitrogen has four production facilities located in:in Donaldsonville, Louisiana;Louisiana, Port Neal, Iowa;Iowa, Yazoo City, Mississippi;Mississippi, and Woodward, Oklahoma. Natural gas is the principal raw material and primary fuel source used in the ammonia production process. CF Nitrogen has access to competitively-pricedcompetitively priced natural gas through a reliable network of pipelines that are connected to major natural gas trading hubs near its production facilities.

Products and Services

CF Nitrogen produces nitrogen-based products, including methanol, UAN and urea and related products.

Sales and Marketing; Customers

CF Nitrogen has three customers, including usCHS and two consolidated subsidiaries of CF Industries.

Industry; Competition

On August 31, 2017,2019, we had 11,626 full,10,703 full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal employees. Of that total, 2,8912,522 were employed in our Energy segment, 8,0137,418 were employed in our Ag segment and 722763 were employed in Corporate and Other. In addition to those individuals directly employed by us, many individuals work for joint ventures in which we have a 50% or less ownership interest, including employees of CF Nitrogen and Ventura Foods in our Nitrogen Production segment and Foods segments,Corporate and Other categories, respectively, and are not included in these totals.

Labor Relations

As of August 31, 2017,2019, we had 12 collective bargaining agreements with unions covering approximately 8.5%8% of our employees in the United States and Canada.States. These collective bargaining agreements expire on various dates from December 31, 2017, to June 30, 2021,through November 1, 2023, except thatfor one collective bargaining agreement covering 2024 pipeline employees, which renews automatically every September 1, unless 60 days’ notice of termination is given.

We are an agricultural membership cooperative organized under Minnesota cooperative law to do business with member and non-member patrons.

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains and our other publicly available documents may contain, and our officers, directors and other representatives may from time to time make, “forward-looking statements”"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “goal,” “seek,” “believe,” “project,” “estimate,” “expect,” “strategy,” “future,” “likely,” “may,” “should,” “will”"anticipate," "intend," "plan," "goal," "seek," "believe," "project," "estimate," "expect," "strategy," "future," "likely," "may," "should," "will" and similar references to future periods. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our businesses, financial condition and results of operations, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements are discussed or identified in our public filings made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including in this “Risk Factors”"Risk Factors" discussion. Any forward-looking statements made by us in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are based only on information currently available to us and speak only as of the date on which the statement is made. We undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

Reference to this Cautionary Statement in the context of a forward-looking statement shall be deemed to be a statement that any one or more of the following factors may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statement.

Our revenues, results of operations and cash flows are affected by market prices for commodities such as crude oil, natural gas, ethanol, fertilizer, grain, oilseed, flour, and crude and refined vegetable oils. Commodity prices generally are affected by a wide range of factors beyond our control, including weather, plant disease, insect damage, drought, the availability and adequacy of supply, government regulation and policies, and general political and economic conditions. We are also exposed to fluctuating commodity prices as the result of our inventories of commodities, typically grain, fertilizer and petroleum products, and purchase and sale contracts at fixed or partially fixed prices. At any time, our inventory levels and unfulfilled fixed or partially fixed price contract obligations may be substantial. We have processes in place to monitor exposures to these risks and engage in strategies, such as hedging, to manage these risks. If these controls and strategies are not successful in mitigating our exposure to these fluctuations, we could be materially and adversely affected. IncreasesChanges in market prices for commodities that we purchase without a corresponding increasechange in the priceselling prices of ourthose products or our sales volume or a decrease in our other operating expenses could reduce ourcan affect revenues and net income.operating earnings. Similarly, increased or decreased sales volumes without a corresponding change in the purchase and selling prices of those products can affect revenues and operating earnings.

For example, in our energy operations, profitability depends largely on the margin between the cost of crude oil that we refine and the selling prices that we obtain for our refined products. The prices for both crude oil and for gasoline, diesel fuel and other refined petroleum products fluctuate widely. Factors influencing these prices, many of which are beyond our control, include:

The long-term effects of these and other conditions on the prices of crude oil and refined petroleum products are uncertain and ever-changing. Increases in crude oil prices without a corresponding increase in the prices of our refined petroleum products, and decreases in crude oil prices with larger corresponding decreases in the prices of our refined petroleum products, would reduce our net income. Accordingly, we expect our margins on, and the profitability of our energy business to fluctuate, possibly significantly, over time.

In addition, changes in international trade agreements and trade disputes can adversely affect commodity trade flows by limiting or disrupting trade between countries or regions. In many countries around the world, historical free trade relationships are being challenged. For example, the U.S. government has imposed tariffs on certain products imported into the United States, which has resulted in reciprocal tariffs from other countries, including countries where we operate and/or into which we import products, such as imports of U.S. soybeans into China. In addition, the U.S. government has indicated its intent to renegotiate or potentially terminate certain existing international trade agreements and it is unclear what changes, if any, will be made to international trade agreements that are relevant to our business activities. These actions have created uncertainty between the United States and other nations, including countries where we operate, and have led to significant volatility in commodity prices, disruptions in historical trade flows and shifts in planting patterns in the United States and South America, all of which have resulted in reduced volumes of grain exports overall and have presented challenges and uncertainties for our business. Changes in trade policy, withdrawals from or material modifications to relevant international trade agreements and continued uncertainty could be materiallydepress economic activity and restrict our access to suppliers and customers. Tariffs and trade restrictions that are implemented on products that we buy and/or sell could increase the cost of those products or adversely affectedaffect the availability of market access. These cost increases and market changes could adversely affect demand for our products and reduce margins, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and our earnings. In addition, the U.S. government can prevent or restrict us from doing business in or with other countries. These restrictions and those of other governments could limit our ability to gain access to business opportunities in various countries.

The level of demand for our products is affected by global and regional demographics and macroeconomic conditions, including population growth rates and changes in standards of living. A significant downturn in global economic growth or recessionary conditions in major geographic regions may lead to a reduced demand for agricultural commodities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects. Additionally, weakWeak global economic conditions and adverse conditions in financial and capital markets may adversely impact the financial condition and liquidity of some of our customers, suppliers and other counterparties, which could have a material adverse effect on our customers' ability to pay for our products and on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects.

Our revenues originatedAdditionally, planted acreage and consequently the volume of fertilizer and crop protection products applied, is partially dependent on government programs, grain prices and the perception held by producers of demand for production, all of which are outside ofour control. Moreover, our business and operations may be affected by weather conditions that are outside our control. For example:

Emerging sustainability and other environmental priorities outside our control could also affect agricultural practices and future demand for agronomy products applied to crops and the Asia Pacific region.

We do not have an exclusive relationship with our members and our members are not obligated to supply us with their products or purchase products from us. Our members often have a variety of distribution outlets and product sources available to them. If our members were to sell their products to other purchasers or purchase products from other sellers, our revenues and margins would decline and our results of operations and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

We are exposed to the risk of nonperformance and nonpayment by counterparties, whether pursuant to contracts or otherwise. Risk of nonperformance and nonpayment by counterparties includes the inability or refusal of a counterparty to pay us, the inability or refusal to perform because of a counterparty’scounterparty's financial condition and liquidity or for any other reason, and also the risk that the counterparty will refuse to perform a contract during a period of price fluctuations where contract prices are significantly different than the then current market prices. In the event that we experience significant nonperformance or nonpayment by counterparties, our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected. For example, we store inventory in third-party warehouses, and the operators of these warehouses may not adequately store or secure our inventory, or they may improperly sell that inventory to someone else, which could expose us to a loss of the value of that inventory. In the

We operate in several highly competitive business segments and our competitors may succeed in developing new or enhanced products that are better than ours, may be more successful in marketing and selling their products than we are, or may have more effective supply chain capability than we have. Competitive factors include price, service level, proximity to markets, access to transportation, product quality and marketing. In our business segments, we compete with certain companies that are larger and better known than we are and that have greater marketing, financial, personnel and other resources than we do. As a result, we may not be able to continue to compete successfully, with our competitors, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects.

We extend credit to, make loans to and engage in other financing arrangements with individual producers, local cooperatives and other third parties around the world. When we do so, weWe incur credit risk and the risk of losses if our borrowers and others to which we extend credit do not repay their loans or perform their obligations to pay us the money they owe. These parties may default on their obligations to us due to bankruptcy, lack of liquidity, operational failure or for other reasons. If these counterparties do not pay us back, such that we experience significant defaults on their payment obligations to us, our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

We are also subject to the risk that our rights against borrowers and other third parties that owe us money may not be enforceable in all circumstances, forcircumstances. For example, if a borrower or third party declaresmay declare bankruptcy. In addition, due to implications of the overall agricultural sector's extended period of depressed commodity prices and margins and weather-related impacts on production in 2019, among other factors, the credit quality of borrowers and other third parties whose obligations we hold could deteriorate, including a deterioration in the value of collateral posted by those parties to secure their obligations to us pursuant to purchase contracts, loan agreements or other contracts. If that deterioration occurs, the material adverse effects of third parties not performing their repayment obligations may be exacerbated if the collateral held by us cannot be realized or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount owed to us. For example, certain loans and other financing arrangements we undertake with agricultural producers are typically secured by the counterparty’scounterparty's crops that are planted in the current year. There is a risk that the value of the crop will not be sufficient to satisfy the counterparty’s repayment obligations under the financing arrangement as a result of weather, crop growing conditions, other factors that influence the price, supply and demand for agricultural commodities or for other reasons.

In addition, disputes may arise as to the amount of collateral we are entitled to receive and the value of pledged assets. The terminationTermination of contracts and the foreclosure on collateral may subject us to claims for the improper exercise of our rights. Default rates, downgrades and disputes with counterparties as to the valuation of collateral increase significantly in times of market stress and illiquidity.

In respect ofto our lending activity, we evaluate the collectability of both commercial and producer loans on a specific identification basis, based on the amount and quality of the collateral obtained, and record specific loan loss reserves when appropriate. Consistent with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("U.S. GAAP"), a general reserve is also maintained based on historical loss experience and various qualitative factors. For other forms of credit, we establish reserves as appropriate and consistent with U.S. GAAP. The reserves represent our best estimate based uponon current facts and circumstances. Future developments or changes in assumptions may cause us to record adjustments to the reserves whichthat could materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

At this time, it is unclear what changes, if any, will be made to currentCurrent federal income tax laws, regulations and interpretations regarding the taxation of cooperatives which allow us to exclude income generated through business with or for a member (patronage income) from our taxable income. If any changes are made to such federal income tax laws, regulations or interpretations, or if in the future we were not eligible to be taxed as a cooperative, our tax liability would significantly increase and our net income would significantly decrease.

We are subject to numerous federal, state and local provisions regulating our business and operations. We incur and expect to incur significant capital and operating expenses to comply with these laws and regulations. We may be unable to pass on those expenses to customers without experiencing volume and margin losses. For example, the compliance burden and impact on our operations and profitability as a result of the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank”("Dodd-Frank") and related regulations continue to evolve, as federal agencies have implemented and continue to implement its many provisions through regulation. These efforts to change the regulation of financial markets subject users of derivatives, such as CHS, to extensive oversight and regulation by the CFTC. Such initiatives have imposed and may continue to impose additional costs on us, including operating and compliance costs, and the cost of fines or penalties in the event we do not comply, and could materially affect the availability, as well as the cost and terms, of certain transactions. Certain federal regulations, studies and reports addressing Dodd-Frank, including the regulation of swaps and derivatives, are still being implemented and others are being finalized. We will continue to monitor these developments. Any of these matters could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects.

We establish reserves for the future cost of known compliance obligations, such as remediation of identified environmental issues. However, these reserves may prove inadequate to meet our actual liability. Moreover, amended, new or more stringent requirements, stricter interpretations of existing requirements or the future discovery of currently unknown compliance issues may require us to make material expenditures or subject us to liabilities that we currently do not anticipate. Furthermore, our failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations could subject us to administrative penalties and injunctive relief, civil remedies, including fines and injunctions, criminal fines and penalties, and recalls of our products. For example, we regularly maintain hedges to manage the price risks associated with our commercial operations. These transactions typically take place on exchanges such as the CME. Our hedging transactions and activities are subject to the rules and regulations of the exchanges we use and governing bodies, including the CME, as well asthe NYMEX, the CBOT, the MGEX and the CFTC. All exchanges have broad powers to review required records, to investigate and enforce compliance and to punish noncompliance by entities subject to their jurisdiction. The failureFailure to comply with such rules and regulations could lead to restrictions on our trading activities or subject us to enforcement action by the CFTC or a disciplinary action by the exchanges, which could lead to substantial sanctions.fines or penalties or limitations on our related operations. In addition, any investigation or proceeding by an exchange or the CFTC, whether successful or unsuccessful, could result in substantial costs, the diversion of resources, including management time, and potential harm to our reputation, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects.

We operate on a global basis and are subject to anti-corruption, anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 as amended (the “FCPA”("FCPA"). The FCPA and other similar anti-corruption, anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations in other jurisdictions generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries or agents from making improper payments to government officials or any other persons for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business. We operate and sell our products in many parts of the world that have experienced governmental corruption to some degree and in certain circumstances strict compliance with anti-corruption, anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations may conflict with local customs and practices. In addition, in certain countries, we engage third-party agents or intermediaries to act on our behalf.behalf and/or conduct all or a portion of our operations through joint venture partners, including in those countries with a high risk for corruption. If any of these third parties violate applicable anti-corruption, anti-bribery or anti-kickback laws or regulations, we may be liable for those violations. We have policies in place prohibiting employees from making or authorizing improper payments, we train our employees regarding compliance with anti-corruption, anti-bribery and anti-kickback laws and regulations, and we utilize procedures to identify and mitigate risks of such misconduct by our employees, and third-party agents, intermediaries and intermediaries.joint venture partners. However, we cannot provide assurances that our employees, or third-party agents, intermediaries or intermediariesjoint venture partners will comply with those policies, laws and regulations. If we are found liable for violations of the FCPA or other similar anti-corruption, anti-bribery or anti-kickback laws or regulations, either due to our own acts or out of inadvertence or due to the acts or inadvertence of others, we could suffer criminal or civil fines or penalties or other repercussions, including reputational harm, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

New and current environmental and energy laws and regulations, including regulations relating to alternative energy sources and the risk of global climate change, new interpretations of existing environmental and energy laws and regulations,

Also, pursuant to the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the EPA has promulgated the Renewable Fuel Standard (“RFS”("RFS"), which requires refiners to blend renewable fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, with their petroleum fuels or to purchase renewable energy credits, known as RINs,Renewable Identification Numbers ("RINs"), in lieu of blending. The EPA generally establishes new annual renewable fuel percentage standards for each compliance year in the preceding year. We generate RINs in our marketing operations under the RFS,RFS; however, it ismay not be enough to meet the needs of our refining

During fiscal 2019, the EPA granted our Laurel, Montana, refinery an extension of the small refinery exemption under the RFS as provided for under the Clean Air Act for 2018 ("small refinery exemption"). This action provided our Laurel refinery an exemption from its renewable fuel volume obligations under the RFS program for compliance year 2018. In granting this time.exemption, the EPA considered a number of factors and concluded the Laurel refinery qualified for the exemption as prescribed under the standard. As with other competitors who received the exemption in the same geographic area as our Laurel refinery, the small refinery exemption lowers our cost to operate and has a positive impact on our earnings. Since the small refinery exemption is granted on a year-to-year basis, we are unable to predict whether we will receive this exemption in the future.

Many of our current and former facilities have been in operation for many years and over that time we and other operators of those facilities have generated, used, stored and disposed of substances or wastes that are or might be considered hazardous under applicable or future enacted environmental laws, including liquid fertilizers, chemicals and fuels stored in underground and above-ground tanks. Any past or future actions in violation of applicable environmental laws could subject us to administrative penalties, fines, injunctions or other costs, such as capital expenditures, and injunctions.expenditures. In addition, an owner or operator of contaminated property, and a party who sends hazardous materials to such site for treatment, storage, disposal or recycling can be liable for the cost of investigation and remediation under environmental laws. In some instances, such liability exists regardless of fault. Moreover, future or unknown past releases of hazardous substances could subject us to private lawsuits claiming damages, including for bodily injury or property damage, and to adverse publicity, which could have a material adverse effect on us. Liabilities, including legal costs, related to remediation of contaminated properties are not recognized by us until the related costs are considered probable and can be reasonably estimated.

If any of our food or animal feed products becamewere to become adulterated or misbranded, we maywould need to recall those items and could experience product liability claims if either consumers or customers’customers' livestock were injured or were claimed to be injured as a result. A widespread product recall or a significant product liability judgment could cause our products to be unavailable for a period of time or could cause a loss of consumer or customer confidence in our products. Even if a product liability claim iswere unsuccessful or iswere not fully pursued, the negative publicity surrounding any assertion that our products caused illness or injury could adversely affect our business and reputation with existing and potential consumers and customers and our corporate and brand image. Moreover, claims or liabilities of this sort might not be covered by our insurance or by any rights of indemnity or contribution that we may have against others. In addition, general public perceptions regarding the quality, safety or health risks associated with particular food or animal feed products, such as concerns regarding genetically modified crops, could reduce demand and prices for some of the products associated with our businesses. To the extent that consumer preferences evolve away from products that our members or we produce for health or other reasons, such as the growing demand for organic food products, and we are unable to develop or procure products that satisfy new consumer preferences, there will be a decreased demand for our products, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, liquidity, results of operations and prospects.

Many of our business activities are highly seasonal and operating results vary throughout the year. Our revenue and income are generally lowest during the second and fourth fiscal quarters and highest during the first and third fiscal quarters. For example, in our Ag segment, our crop nutrients and country operations businessesbusiness generally experienceexperiences higher volumes and income during the spring planting season and during the fall harvest season and our agronomy business generally experiences higher volumes and income during the spring planting season. Our global grain marketing operations are also subject to fluctuations in volume and income based on producer harvests, world grain prices and demand.demand, and international trade relationships. Our Energy segment generally experiences higher volumes and income in certain operating areas, such as refined products, in the spring, summer and early fall when gasoline and diesel fuel usage by our customers and members is highest and is subject to global supply and demand forces. Other energy products, such as propane, maygenerally experience higher volumes and income during the winter heating and crop dryingcrop-drying seasons.

Our operations are subject to business interruptions due to unanticipated events such as explosions, fires, pipeline interruptions, transportation delays, equipment failures, crude oil or refined product spills, inclementadverse weather conditions and labor disputes. For example:

The effects of any of these events could be significant. We maintain insurance coverage against many, but not all, potential losses or liabilities arising from these operating hazards, but uninsured losses or losses above our coverage limits are possible. Uninsured losses and liabilities arising from operating hazards could have a material adverse effect on us.

Our business is affected by fluctuations in commodity prices, transportation costs, energy prices, foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates. We monitor position limits, and account receivables and other exposures and engage in other strategies and controls to manage these risks. Our monitoring efforts may not be successfuleffective at detecting a significant risk exposure and our controls and strategies may not be effective in adequately managing against the occurrence of a significant loss relating to a risk exposure. If our controls and strategies are not successful in mitigating or preventing our financial exposure to losses due to the fluctuations or failures mentioned above, it could significantly and adversely affect our operating results.

We require significant capital, including access to credit markets from time to time, to operate our business and fund our strategies. Our working capital requirements are directly affected by the price of commodities, which may fluctuate significantly and change quickly. We also require substantial capital to maintain and upgrade our extensive network of facilities to keep pace with competitive developments, technological advances, regulations and changing safety standards. In addition, the expansion of our business and pursuit of acquisitions or other business opportunities has required, and may in the future require, significant amounts of capital. If we are unable to generate sufficient cash flow or maintain access to adequate external financing, including as a result of significant disruptions in the global credit markets, it could restrict our current operations and our growth opportunities, which could adversely affect our operating results and restrict our ability to repay our existing indebtedness.

As a cooperative, we may not sell common stock in our company. In addition, existing laws and our articles of incorporation and bylaws limit dividends on any preferred stock we may issue to 8% per annum. These limitations may restrict our ability to raise equity capital and may adversely affect our ability to compete with enterprises that do not face similar restrictions.

Consolidation has occurred among the individual producers of products we sell and purchase, including crude oil, fertilizer and grain, and it is highly likely to continue in the future. Consolidation could allow producers to negotiate pricing, supply availability and other contract terms that are less favorable to us. Consolidation also may increase the competition amonglikelihood that consumers of these products to enter into supply relationships with a smaller number of producers, resulting in potentially higher prices for the products we purchase.

Consolidation has also occurred among cooperative associations that are the primary wholesale customers of our products, which has resulted in a smaller wholesale and retail customer base for our products and has intensified the competition for these customers, and thiscustomers. This consolidation is likely to continue in the future. For example, ongoingOngoing consolidation among distributors and brokers of food products and food retailers has altered the buying patterns of these businesses, as they have increasingly elected to work with product suppliers who can meet their needs nationwide rather than just regionally or locally. If these cooperatives, distributors, brokers and retailers elect not to purchase our products, our revenues, results of operations and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected.

In addition, in the seed, fertilizer market,and crop protection markets, consolidation at both the producer and wholesale customer level increaseshas increased the potential for direct sales from the fertilizerrespective input manufacturer to the cooperative customers and/or the individual agricultural producer, which would remove us from the supply chain and could have a material and adverse effect on our revenues, results of operations and cash flows.

Numerous alternative energy sources currently under development could serve as alternatives to our gasoline, diesel fuel and other refined petroleum products. If any of these alternative products become more economically viable or preferable to our productscustomers for environmental or other reasons, demand for our energy products would decline. Declining demand for our energy products, particularly diesel fuel sold for farming applications, could materially and adversely affect our revenues, results of operations and cash flows.

Technological advances in agriculture could decrease the demand for crop nutrients, energy and other crop input products and services that we provide. Genetically engineered seeds that resist disease and insects, or that meet certain nutritional requirements, could affect the demand for our crop nutrients and crop protection products. Demand for fuel that we sell could decline as technology allows for more efficient usage of equipment. Declining demand for our products could materially and adversely affect our revenues, results of operations and cash flows.

We monitor our business portfolio and organizational structure and have made and may continue to make acquisitions, strategic alliances, joint ventures, divestitures and changes to our organizational structure. With respect to acquisitions, future results will be affected by our ability to identify suitable acquisition candidates, to adequately finance any acquisitions and to integrate acquired businesses quickly and obtain the anticipated financial returns, including synergies. Our ability to successfully complete a divestiture will depend on, among other things, our ability to identify buyers that are prepared to acquire such assets or businesses on acceptable terms and to adjust and optimize our retained businesses following the divestiture. Additionally, we may fail to consummate proposed acquisitions, divestitures, joint ventures or strategic alliances after incurring expenses and devoting substantial resources, including management time, to such transactions.

Several parts of our business, including in particular our nitrogen production business, our foods business and portions of our global grain marketing and wheat milling operations, are operated through joint ventures with third parties where we do not have majority control of the venture. By operating a business through a joint venture, we have less control over business decisions than we have in our wholly-owned or majority-owned businesses.subsidiaries and limited liability companies in which we have a controlling interest. In particular, we generally cannot act on major business initiatives in our joint ventures without the consent of the other party or parties in

We made certain assumptions and projections regarding the future of the markets served by our joint venture investments, which included projected market pricing and demand for their products. These assumptions were an integral part of the economics used to evaluate these joint venture investment opportunities prior to consummation. To the extent that actual market performance varies from our models, our ability to achieve the projected returns on our joint venture investments may be impacted in a materialmaterially adverse manner.

    

Our operations rely on certain key information technology (“IT”("IT") systems, somemany of which are dependent uponlegacy in nature or may depend on third-party services to provide critical connections of data, information and services for internal and external users. Over the next several years, we expect to continue implementing a new enterprise resource planning system (“ERP”("ERP"), which has and will continue to require significant capital and human resources to deploy. There can be no assurance that the actual costs for the ERP will not exceed our current estimates or that the ERP will not take longer to implement than we currently expect. In addition, potential flaws in implementing the ERP or in the failure of any portion/module of the ERP to meet our needs or provide appropriate controls may pose risks to our ability to operate successfully and efficiently.efficiently and with an effective system of internal controls. There may be other challenges and risks to both our aging and current IT systems over time due to any number of causes, such as catastrophic events, availability of resources, power outages, security breaches or cyber-based attacks, and as we upgrade and standardize our ERP system on a worldwide basis. These challenges and risks could result in legal claims or proceedings, liability or penalties, disruption in operations, loss of valuable data, increased costs and damage to our reputation, all of which could adversely affect our business. Our ongoing IT investments include those relating to cybersecurity, including technology, hired expertise and cybersecurity risk mitigation actions. However, an incident or breach may occur and subject us to an adverse impact on our business and reputation. Further, we are subject to laws and regulations in the United States and other jurisdictions regarding privacy, data protection and data security, including those related to the collection, storage, handling, use, disclosure, transfer and security of personal data. These laws and regulations pose increasingly complex compliance challenges and may require us to incur significant additional compliance costs. Any violation of such laws and regulations, including as a result of a security or privacy breach, could subject us to legal claims, regulatory penalties and damage to our reputation.

As of the date hereof, there were no unresolved comments from the Securities and Exchange CommissionSEC staff regarding our periodic or current reports.

We own or lease energy, agronomy, grain handlinggrain-handling and processing facilities and other real estate throughout the United States and internationally. Below is a summary of these locations.

We are involved as a defendant in various lawsuits, claims and disputes, which are in the normal course of our business. The resolution of any such matters may affect consolidated net income for any fiscal period; however, our management believes any resulting liabilities, individually or in the aggregate, will not have a material effect on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows during any fiscal year.

Not applicable.

As a cooperative, we do not have any common stock that is traded or otherwise. We have not sold any equity securities during the three years ended August 31, 2017,2019, that were not registered under the Securities Act of 1933.

The following table sets forth our selected historical consolidated financial information for each of the five periods indicated. This information should be read in conjunction with Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in Item 7 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and with our consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in U.S. dollars and in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The selected financial information as of andincome statement data for the years ended August 31, 2019, 2018, 2017 and 2016, 2015, 2014, and 2013 isbalance sheet data as of August 31, 2019, 2018 and 2017, are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes. The selected income statement data for the year ended August 31, 2015, and balance sheet data as of August 31, 2016 and 2015, are derived from unaudited consolidated financial information not included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Certain prior period amounts have been revised as follows: