We’re moving into fall and, for a lot of us, that means bulk feed season. I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Brett Kenworthy. We talked about his role here at the Coop, his experience with his own animals, and how helping customers is the highlight of his day.
Hey, Brett, how long have you been with the Coop?
I started with Farmers Coop here in Van Buren in May of 2019, so have been with the Coop for roughly 5 and a half years.
Can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself, and why you like working for the Coop?
I grew up on a row crop farm in Southern Illinois and my career in agriculture, since college, has taken me to multiple states including Missouri, Iowa, and now Oklahoma. I’ve been involved in all aspects of the agriculture world, including grain, agronomy, irrigation and now cattle. The reason I enjoy working for Farmers Coop is the people. The people I get to work with each and every day but also the customers. Being able to talk to, and work with, customers to give them recommendations and advice to better their operation and hopefully make them more successful is easily the best part of what I do. A lot of what I – and the team I work with – do at the Coop is not about trying to sell our customers a product, but to be able to provide them the services and recommendations that will help improve their operation.
So, for you, it’s about building relationships with the community and helping them be successful. That’s great. Do you currently have animals? Can you tell us a little about your own animals?
Sure. A lot of what I talk to customers about, and the recommendations that I give them, is not only based on industry knowledge that I have gained along the way in my career but also, and more so, based off of my own on-farm experiences. My wife and I currently run cattle ourselves and use, or have used, a lot of the products that I recommend, and that we sell here at the Coop.
Bulk Feed Specific:
How do you know what to feed your animals?
When someone asks me what they should feed their cattle, I almost always respond with a series of questions. To truly know what that animal’s requirements are, we have to know a little bit of information about that animal. Are these cows 1st calf heifers, calves, yearlings, bulls, combinations, etc.? Do they have grass/pasture available? What’s the quality and availability of that grass? If we are in the winter, do they have hay available? What’s the quality of the hay? From those questions and some others, we can start to narrow down the true requirements for the cattle that they are wanting to get a feed recommendation for.
So, it’s not a one-size-fits all solution. By asking some questions, you’re able to narrow down and even customize feed, correct?
Yes. We do have a few of our common rations that most people are familiar with (5WAY, Cattleblend, etc.) but we also have the ability to mix up custom rations from the individual ingredients that we carry depending on what the customer’s needs are. We also have the availability to add mineral packs, vitamin packs, molasses and other additives.
How does a new customer go about buying bulk feed? Can it be delivered?
All of the bulk feed at Farmers Coop comes out of the Van Buren facility. There are a few different options when it comes to the customers getting our bulk feed. Option 1.) Contact myself, or anyone in the bulk feed department, at Van Buren and we can discuss delivering feed straight to your farm. There are a few requirements that would be discussed. Option 2.) A few of our branches, Poteau, Mena, Sallisaw, Waldron, Ozark, Subiaco and Lincoln, have overhead bulk bins where customers can purchase our Cattleblend. Option 3.) Visit your local store and talk to them about getting a bulk bag mixed up and sent to that store for pick up.
Okay, Brett, thanks for taking a minute to talk to me. I know you’re busy, so I’ll let you get back to it. One last thing, where can readers reach you for questions or to place an order.
I can be reached at the Van Buren store. 479.474.8051. Thanks. I look forward to hearing from some folks.
Ryanne Harper & Brett Kenworthy