Organic feed producer plans to expand sales

Waynesboro-based New Country Organics was looking for a way to expand its sales in Western states when it discovered a nearly century-old feed mill in Lubbock, Texas.

The revamped mill, which is expected to start production next year, is expected to play a key role in ramping up the company’s growth.

New Country Organics, which was founded in 2008, produces certified organic, soy-free feed and livestock minerals.

Company CEO Jim Campbell described the Lubbock mill as “a good fit. It gives us access to new markets.” The mill is expected to pro­vide New Country feed to Texas, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma and California.

New Country’s expansion is a reaction to a growing national interest in organic food.

“People are trying to take control of their food chains more and more,” Campbell says. “There are about half a dozen companies across the country that do something similar to us. We approach feed differently. Conventional companies use pellets with cheaper grains. We don’t pelletize. We don’t do cross pollination.”

The company currently distributes its products from Florida to New England and as far west as Dallas. “We do have some customers in California,” Campbell says. “This new location will help us build farther to the west.”

Readying the Lubbock mill for full-scale production will take place in two phases.

The first phase includes preparing the facility to serve as a distribution site. Feed produced in Waynesboro will be shipped from Lubbock to customers in the Western states.

Phase two involves making the mill a certified organic feed processor. “The mill has to be in excellent shape, and it has to be spotless,” Campbell says.

Plans call for the mill to begin production during the first quarter of 2017.

New Country sells products in bulk to wholesale customers, such as feed and hardware stores. It also sells products to retail customers online.

The company has 22 full-time employees in Waynesboro and expects to create about 15 jobs during the next 18 months in Lubbock.

In addition to feed, the company also sells certified organic kelp from Iceland. “It’s great as a feed supplement. We ship it all over the U.S.,” Campbell says.

New Country buys grain from the U.S. and Canada for its products. “We never buy foreign grain,” Campbell says. “We are dedicated to growing New Country Organics in a socially responsible way.”