CHS, Inc., will distribute $231 million to owners in all 50 states this year as a result of its strong fiscal 2010 earnings, the company said Monday.

The Inver Grove Heights-based company's net income for the fiscal year that ended on August 31 was $502.2 million-up 32 percent from the previous year.

CHS is owned by farmers, ranchers, and cooperatives from across the United States, as well as thousands of preferred stockholders. It supplies energy, crop nutrients, grain, livestock feed, food, and food ingredients and provides business solutions including insurance, financial, and risk-management services.

Of the $231 million being returned to CHS owners, $141 million is being distributed this month from 2010 earnings. But additional retirements of equity and dividends paid on preferred stock made throughout the year are expected to bring the fiscal 2011 cash return total to about $231 million, CHS said.

CHS will distribute checks to 1,100 member companies and more than 45,000 individuals and other businesses. In Minnesota, 13,009 checks amounting to $38.9 million are being distributed.

“In making this distribution, CHS has demonstrated one of the most important ways we can deliver on our mission of adding value for all of our stakeholders,” Michael Toelle, CHS board chairman and a Browns Valley, Minnesota, farmer, said in a statement. “Strong financial performance also allows CHS to meet our member-owners' needs on a daily basis and to fulfill a long-term strategic direction as a successful energy and grain-based foods company.”

CHS is one of Minnesota's largest companies based on its revenue, which totaled $25.3 billion for the fiscal year that ended in August.