Eye on Agribusiness spotlights Tulsa Feed

Our bloodlines…. Introducing our new Junior Buck Sire, purchased from Rebekah Clarke of Willows, CA. STARLET LACE SIBER LEBEN. His Dam and Maternal Grandma were among the top five U.S. Saanen milkers in 2018. Will have kids from him later this spring. • Caprikorn Farms, Gapland, Maryland www.caprikornfarms.com

• Caprikorn Zurich Bing • Des-Ruhigestelle Saanens, Molalla, Oregon www.ruhigestelle.com

• Des-Ruhigestelle Eedrick Eric Wailes, Owner/Manager 6355 E. Huntsville Rd. Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 236-6498 Email: ewailes@uark.edu www.brokencedarfarm.com Contact us or come for a visit to see the herd. Broken Cedar Saanen Dairy Goat Farm Located in Northwest Arkansas, our herd of high quality registered Saanen dairy goats has been in development for 10 years. We offer for sale excellent milking does, yearlings, kids, and breeding bucks.

ANNUAL CATTLE MINERAL SALE FEBRUARY 1 - APRIL 30, 2020

SAVE ON PURINA ® CATTLE MINERAL PRODUCTS

eye on agri-business meeting the needs of farmers

Tulsa Feed

By Terry Ropp

Owner: Chuck Jefferson Location: Tulsa, Okla.

History: The original Tulsa Feed opened in 1922 in a location close to the railroad. It had a full mill, and processed and mixed own feed.

“As best as I can recall, I am the fourth owner,” current owner Chuck Jefferson said. “After managing a grocery store for 30 years, I wanted to change and to be my own boss, so I purchased the business. During my time in the original facility, I remodeled it as we have now done to our new location, which is only a couple of miles from the old one. Everything changed late last year when the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad decided to reclaim the land in order to add another track. After renovating the new facility to meet our needs, we are in good shape and welcoming well-known customer friends and making new ones. My five employees are moving with me to the new location and are central to my business. Because my turnover is very low, they know my customers. They seem to love helping and advising others in taking care of their animals as much as I do.” Photo by Terry Ropp

Products and Services: “If it eats, we feed it,” Chuck said. “One advantage of the new site is presenting an opportunity to expand what we offer in terms of brands and variety. In addition to providing food for the local animal shelter, we also supply everything but fresh meat to the Tulsa Zoo, which was a part of the business even before I purchased it. The bulk of my business is comprised of equine and pet customers, with our main feed brands being Mid-America Feeds, Purina, and Big V. To help our equine customers, we offer square bales in both prairie hay and north Kansas alfalfa. We have increased our horse tack, which includes bridles, halters lead ropes, etc. In addition, we offer a variety of equipment for many types of animals. For chickens, we carry waterers, feeders and incubators and round out our selections for other animals, including dog kennels, collars and harnesses, as well as rabbit cages and a variety of waters and feeders. Our cattle customers are provided with cubes and water troughs. We have an extensive array of necessary medicines and vaccines for all kinds of animals. Finally, in the spring we supply annual and perennial plants for gardens and beds.”

12 Ozarks Farm & Neighbor • www.ozarksfn.com FEBRUARY 10, 2020 Philosophy and Future: “A business like ours is dependent upon a personal relationship with our customers. Whenever possible, we call people by name and engage in social conversation about their lives, their animals and what we can do to help meet their needs. Consequently, my staff has a depth of knowledge of a wide variety of animals and their specific nutritional needs at various point in their lives. One plan for the future is that we hope to offer deer plot supplies for our many hunters. This is an exciting time with our new location providing easier access, and we look forward to expanding our business.” $1 off Purina Wind & Rain and Rangeland Bagged Mineral $2 off Purina Wind & Rain and Rangeland Bagged Mineral with Altosid or Availa®️4 Offer Good February 1 - April 30, 2020 at all 15 Farmers Coop Locations in the River Valley, Northwest Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma.

Photo by Terry Ropp

town &country in the field and in the office

400+ Beef Industry Relevant Bulls will sell in Seedstock Plus Sales this spring!! North Missouri Bull Sale February 22, 2020 * 12 noon Kingsville Livestock, Kingsville, MO 125 bulls! All 18 month old bulls! Gelbvieh & Balancers! ALL BLACK!!

13 The Ozarks’ Most Read Farm Newspaper FEBRUARY 10, 2020 By Terry Ropp In Town: “I walked into RCB Bank in Inola, Okla., to borrow money just after I graduated from Northeastern State University with a degree in business. I talked to Larry Dalvine, who was sitting exactly where I am now. He suggested I send in a resume and six months later I had a job learning every department as part of my training. I am now market president of the Inola, Catoosa and Coweta branches, and have been based at the Inola branch since 2013. My wife Allison runs the farm fulltime, in addition to being a mom to our sons. I am a member of the Inola School Board and a member of the Inola Chamber of Commerce and the Education Enrichment Foundation.”

In the Country: “My wife and I have been around cattle all of our lives. Allison was raised on a ranch and my father Rick had an Angus-based cattle ranch. We now have a fair-sized ranch outside of Inola with both Angus-influenced commercial cattle, and several breeds of registered cattle. I use Hereford bulls for natural breeding with my commercial herd. Our smaller fall calving season comes from good cows who skipped a cycle. We like spring calving because in the fall you are fighting the cold and poor forage, as well as higher feed and medication costs. The last couple of years we have used a certified preconditioning program with regimented health protocols. While we sell some calves at weaning, most are kept for 90 days afterward and fed with a four-way mix containing corn and distillers grain. Our registered cattle are Angus, Simmental, Charolais and Hereford. We breed them by AI, though some of our best commercial cows are bred by AI with Allison doing most of the research for semen selection. From the registered group, we sell show heifers and bulls. Our boys show heifers, with Cutter’s current heifer being a miniature Hereford. We do pretty well in the show ring, with one Charolais heifer winning her division at nationals in Tulsa. All cows receive 20 percent protein caked cubes and hay we raise ourselves, Bermuda and bluestem. Allison earned an animal degree at Oklahoma State University.” Future: “Our ranch is located on land that belonged to Allison’s family. The boys seem to really enjoy ranch life and our hope is they will be interested enough to continue the heritage ranch we love so much.” Family: wife Allison, and sons Will, 13, and Cutter, 5. Hometown: Inola, Okla. Buck Willhour

REQUEST YOUR CATALOGS TODAY 877-486-1160 john@seedstockplus.com Bid & Buy at:ALL SALES! DVAuction • Guaranteed Sight-Unseen Purchases! Let us help you find the bull to fit your program and needs! • Free Trucking on every bull! No fine print! • Extensive Data & Genomic EPDs! • All bulls are coat color & polled tested & Sire Verified! • All Bulls Are Semen & Trich Tested! • 200+ RFI tested bulls sell in these sales! • Videos of sale bulls on website the week before each sale! www.seedstockplus.com. or www.dvauction.com Arkansas Bull & Female Sale March 7, 2020 1 p.m. Hope Livestock Auction, Hope, AR 75 bulls! 2 year old and 18 month old bulls! Angus, Balancer & Gelbvieh! Red & Black! Select offering of Seedstock Plus Influence Females! Breds, Pairs & Opens! RED Reward Bull & Female Sale March 14, 2020 * 12 noon Wheeler Livestock, Osceola, MO 60 RED Gelbvieh & Balancer bulls! 18 months old & yearlings! Plus! RED Females! South Missouri Bull & Female Sale March 28, 2020 * 12 noon Joplin Regional Stockyards, Carthage, MO * 150 bulls! 18 month old bulls and yearling bulls! Angus, Gelbvieh & Balancers! Plus! Open heifers! ALL BLACK!