Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing · Minnesota
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC
Heron Lake, MN · ~41 workers · 8 years of OSHA Injury Tracking Application data.
- D
- Poor Safety Record
- 4.3
- Avg TCR
- 3.3
- Industry avg
- 0
- Fatalities
The verdict
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC runs at 131% of its industry's injury rate - more dangerous than the typical Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing workplace, earning a grade D.
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC: 4.3 TCR = 131% of Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing BLS 3.3 · 8y Form 300A (see methodology below)
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC safety composite
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC scores strongest on fatalities (safer than 51% of same-industry peers) and weakest on dart rate (safer than 13%), blended into one 0-100 breakdown against same-industry peers. A missing measure drops out and redistributes its weight rather than deflating the score. This is a per-dimension breakdown, distinct from the single letter grade above it (which weights TCR alone against the BLS industry benchmark).
30/100
Percentile-weighted across 3 of 3 measures
- Total Case Rate (TCR)
- F 4.33 per 100 workers
Safer than 31% of industry peers
- DART rate
- F 3.97 per 100 workers
Safer than 13% of industry peers
- Fatalities
- D 0
Safer than 51% of industry peers
Benchmarked live against every credibly-rated employer in the same NAICS industry code in the current OSHA extract (a segment must have at least 8 rated peers to benchmark). Not a legal or compliance determination; PlainSafetyScore's own weighting (TCR 40%, DART 35%, fatalities 25%).
Rising injury rate
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC: 2.1 → 6.0 TCR
Peak year 2022 @ 6.7 TCR · DART/TCR 0.92× in 2024
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC's TCR rose 3.8 from 2.1 in 2016 to 6.0 in 2024. Peak filing year was 2022 at 6.7 TCR. In 2024, DART was 0.92× this establishment's average TCR (severity share of cases).
OSHA ITA Form 300A scorecard
Establishment book 325193 · Heron Lake, MN ABOVE-IND · SMALL
Grade D · TCR 4.3 · 131% of ind
- DART 4.0 DART
- RANK #13/22
- PHOTO Iroquois Bio-Energy
- BOOK 8y book
- INJ 15 inj
- SIZE ~41 FTE
Nearest TCR peer: Iroquois Bio-Energy (0.0 TCR gap)
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Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC in the TCR neighbourhood
Average Total Case Rate among this establishment and nearest same-industry peers
- This site
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC
4.3 TCR
- Iroquois Bio-E
Iroquois Bio-Energy
4.3 TCR
- Green Plains F
Green Plains Fairmont LLC
4.3 TCR
- Chief Ethanol
Chief Ethanol Fuels- Hastings
4.3 TCR
- Valero Renewab
Valero Renewable Fuels Company, LLC (VRF) - Valero Bluffton Plant
4.3 TCR
What this shows Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC averages 4.3 TCR (131% of the Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing BLS benchmark).
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC TCR series: 2016=2.1 · 2017=4.2 · 2019=6.7 · 2020=2.2 · 2021=0 · 2022=6.7 · 2023=6.7 · 2024=6 · BLS 3.3
Where Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC falls in its industry
228 Ethanol, nonpotable, manufactu establishmentsSafer than 31% of graded establishments in this industry, whose median TCR is 3.0.
Narrower to Minnesota alone (the establishments it most directly competes with for workers and contracts): ranked #13 safest of 22 Ethanol, nonpotable, manufactu employers in Minnesota.
Heron Lake BioEnergy LLC has fewer employees than the Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing median and a higher injury rate than the industry's median TCR of 3.0. Workforce size and injury rate do not always move together within the same industry -- some of its smaller peers run higher rates than its larger ones, and vice versa.
Year-by-Year Safety Data
| Year | TCR | DART | Injuries | Illnesses | Fatalities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 6.0 | 4.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 6.7 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 2022 | 6.7 | 0.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 2.2 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 6.7 | 0.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | 4.2 | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
OSHA ITA peer cross-reference
Establishment peer ledger
325193 · MN · Heron Lake
228 Ethanol, nonpotable, manufacturing employers nationwide with a credible TCR · 15,828 rated employers in Minnesota with headcount on file · 3 employers in Heron Lake, MN · 4 cross-state NAT-TCR peers · 4 cross-state NAT-SIZE peers. Closest matches by relationship code are listed below.
| Rel | Establishment | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| NAICS-TCR | Iroquois Bio-Energy | 4.3 TCR |
| NAICS-TCR | Green Plains Fairmont LLC | 4.3 TCR |
| NAICS-TCR | Chief Ethanol Fuels- Hastings | 4.3 TCR |
| NAICS-TCR | Valero Renewable Fuels Company, LLC (VRF) - Valero Bluffton Plant | 4.3 TCR |
| STATE-SIZE | Minnesota Farming | 41 FTE |
| STATE-SIZE | Feedmill TW Shop - SE | 41 FTE |
| STATE-SIZE | Hobbs Brigade Energy Services | 41 FTE |
| STATE-SIZE | Wild Rice Electric Cooperative, Inc. | 41 FTE |
| CITY-NEAR | City of Heron Lake | 37 FTE |
| CITY-NEAR | HL-O Elementary | 36 FTE |
| NAT-TCR | Belmont Village West Lake | 4.3 TCR |
| NAT-TCR | New Albany - Beeler Street | 4.3 TCR |
| NAT-TCR | Blackhawk Transport Inc | 4.3 TCR |
| NAT-TCR | Putnam Machine Products | 4.3 TCR |
| NAT-SIZE | M3 Contracting LLC | 41 FTE |
| NAT-SIZE | Geiger Ready Mix Plant 3 | 41 FTE |
| NAT-SIZE | ISI Berkeley | 41 FTE |
| NAT-SIZE | Glen Burnie, MD Office | 41 FTE |
Rel codes: NAICS-TCR · STATE-SIZE · CITY-NEAR · NAT-TCR/NAT-SIZE cross-state. Read with this employer →
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.