Citgo is owned by the national government of Venezuela, explained Kent Yoder, chief executive of the Elkhart-based Yoder Oil company, and his company wanted to invest in oil produced in the Western Hemisphere rather than send its business to the Middle East. But that was then. Before Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez called President Bush "the devil" during a September address at the United Nations.

Those remarks, plus complaints about Chavez"s handling of human rights in Venezuela, led to an Internet-born boycott of Citgo gas in the United States,

Gerry Yoder, Yoder Oil"s founder, said the company had received complaints from customers about the company"s association with Citgo.

On April 1, Yoder switched from Citgo to American-owned Marathon for mostly business reasons, though there were political undertones for the decision.Brett Yoder, president of the family-owned business, said a few people were not happy with the company"s association with Citgo.

"We"ve gotten compliments for switching from people who appreciate the move," Brett Yoder said in reference to the April 1 switch. "For the most part it"s been a good business decision for us."

He said he preferred Marathon over Citgo because of the benefits that come with Marathon gasoline, like credit card discounts.

"In the world today, you"ve got to set yourself apart," he said. "We just felt like Marathon was the right image for us."

Changing oil brands is not uncommon, said Fernando Garay, spokesman for Houston-based Citgo.

Scot Imus, executive director of the Indiana Petroleum Marketers and Convenient Stores Association, agreed.

Imus said gas boycotts like the one against Citgo end up hurting local retailers more than they hurt the corporations.

"I think the boycotts are certainly misplaced," Imus said. "What they"re boycotting is someone who"s been in the community for a long time. Once we start down that list, are we going to boycott fuel coming from all countries that are not run by good people? It"s awfully tough to do that, and I don"t think it"s fair to single out a company."

Yoder Oil still sells some Citgo products, including most of its industrial lubricants, a cornerstone of its business. They also sell lubricants from other brands, in case some customers are not comfortable buying Citgo products.

"They have a democratic society down there," Kent Yoder said of Venezuela. "They voted on someone (Chavez) that not necessarily everybody agrees with. It"s not very different in this country. We"ve had presidents, as you know, that not all of us have agreed with. They have a different political persuasion, and some people in this country support what he"s saying, and some don"t."

The Yoders say they just want to serve the customers as best they can.

PIN/Southbendtribune.Com/