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Famo Feeds, Freeport, Minnesota, U.S.A. Picture: Collected[/caption]
Famo Feeds, located in Freeport, Minnesota, U.S.A. Operating a family-owned business in an industry that is increasingly dominated by large corporate feed millers has carved out its niche by being an efficient, dependable and responsive provider of feed products to customers in a six-state area in the upper Midwest.
In its 116th year of operation, including the last 40 years under the ownership of the Beste family, Famo Feeds was recognized during the International Production and Processing Expo last winter as the winner of the 2018 American Feed Industry Association/Feedstuffs Feed Facility of the Year award. The award recognizes overall excellence in feed manufacturing operations, including everything from employee development to operating efficiencies to regulatory compliance.
“Famo Feeds is a family-owned business — the first ever to win this award — and I think that shows in how they treat their customers,” said Gary Huddleston, director of feed manufacturing and regulatory affairs for the AFIA, when presenting the award.
In an interview with World Grain at the company’s plant in Freeport, John Beste, president of Famo Feeds, said the recognition is largely due to his employees.
“Good people — it just comes down to that,” he said. “It’s a core group of people that make this award possible.”
The company’s workforce features a nice blend of experienced workers — Beste said the average tenure is around 12 to 15 years — and new employees with fresh ideas. The staff includes employees in six different areas: 15 in production, 10 in sales, 5 clerical workers, 5 supervisors, 5 truck drivers and 3 in technical support.
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From left: John Beste, president of Famo Feeds, and employees Rosie Cabral, Denis Kociemba, Kelly Hinnenkamp, Linda Schneider and Kurt Marthaler. (Arvin Donley's picture is collected)[/caption]
Collectively, they have helped Famo Feeds gain a reputation for quality products and service not only in Minnesota, but the five surrounding states they serve: Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana.
“We’re always looking to expand, but that has been our consistent area for the last 10 years or so,” Beste said. “I’d say we’re doing the same amount of business we’ve always done with fewer customers. We’re also a dealer-driven company; 95% of all of our sales go through distribution.”
Famo Feeds, which was formed in 1903, began as a flour and feed milling company. Eventually the flour milling part of the business was shut down and the focus shifted strictly to feed. It was owned by the Thelen family until 1979, when Al Beste, John’s father, who had worked for many years for Famo Feeds, bought the business. His sons, John and Tom, who is vice-president, have worked for the company for many years.
Until a recent illness, Al, 87, came to the office every day, even after he had officially retired.
One of the things the Beste brothers learned from their father was that establishing a trusting relationship with customers was paramount.
“We try our very hardest to take care of our customers,” Beste said. “It starts with communication. That means once they’ve placed an order, making sure it’s correct and making sure it gets there when they want it and how they want it. And if there’s a problem, making sure there’s immediate communication.
“If we’re short something, we call them as we’re loading instead of back ordering it. We ask them how soon they need it? Do they need us to direct ship it when its ready, or can they wait until the next order? Just the little things like that can make a big difference.”
He said being nimble and flexible is one of the advantages that Famo Feeds enjoys compared to its larger corporate competitors.
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Top from right: Marvin Schneider, plant manager, inside the Famo Feeds control room, Some of the authorities in the hands of the award. Bottom: Carry sacks by robots and cars. Picture: Collected[/caption]
Marvin Schneider, plant manager, inside the Famo Feeds control room. Photo courtesy of Famo Feeds.
“If we have a standard operating procedure that doesn’t work, we can go out into the plant, watch it and say, ‘Yeah, it doesn’t work. Let’s change it then,’” Beste said. “Tomorrow it’s changed, and we can watch it again and if it’s still not working, we can change it again until we find something that works. It doesn’t take six months to make a decision and go through a long chain of command.”
That lack of “red tape” is particularly beneficial when it comes to customer service, said Kurt Marthaler, plant manager.
“If a customer calls in and wants a custom feed and they want it today, we can tell them OK, we can get it to you,” he said. “If you’re in a larger company, it wouldn’t just happen overnight.”
Famo Feeds used to have two feed mills — one located in St. Joseph, Minnesota, and the other in Belgrade, Minnesota. But when lightning struck the Belgrade plant in 2002, burning it to the ground, the Bestes decided to move all their production under one roof by building on a greenfield site near Freeport.
Product quality and safety always have been emphasized at the Famo Feeds facility, which is certified for hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP), Safe Feed/Safe Food and Facility Certified Institute-Restricted Use Protein Products.
Being proactive in these quality control and safety areas made for a relatively smooth transition when it came time to implement the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Read more…
Source: Online/SZK
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