Owners: Josh Spain, Jordan Spain, Carter Leeper
Location: Lockwood, Mo
History: Arrowhead Milling Company is a small-town feed store located in Lockwood, Mo. It began as a locally-owned grain exchange and was purchased by the current owners in 2021. After the purchase, it was reopened under its current name, Arrowhead Milling. One of the owners, Carter Leeper, had been in the feed business for more than 20 years before purchasing the business with his partners, and therefore saw the opportunity to enter the custom feed business with the purchase of the long-standing business.
Feed had been milled on a small scale before the change in ownership, but the focus of the business had been grain trading. Since the change in ownership, they have shifted focus from grain trading to increasing their custom milling abilities and carrying a more traditional style of feed store products in order to fit the skillset of the new owners.
Products and Services: Arrowhead Milling serves customers within about a 50-mile radius and offers delivery for bulk feed. Their goal is to fill the nutritional needs of all livestock, from large to small. They offer custom mixes, created by their nutritionist, that are altered to fit the specific needs and goals of their clients. They also pride themselves on their ability to fit the needs of both hobby farmers and large-scale producers. Their custom rations come in both bulk and bagged options, making great quality nutrition available to all sizes of producer. They try to provide a variety that can fit the needs of almost every farm animal and have created custom rations for many including beef cattle, dairy cattle, hogs, laying hens, horses, sheep and goats. All custom rations are milled, bagged, and ground on-site.
The bulk of their business lies in this custom milling, which is done using commodities including corn gluten, distiller’s grains, soy hull pellets, grain corn and soybean meal.
They also offer several products which are not milled on site including pelletized feed for sheep, goats and horses. Additionally, they carry more traditional farm supply products such as chemicals, animal health supplies, dog and cat food, and fencing supplies. They also offer free-choice minerals from Cargill Animal Nutrition, which allows them to provide a full range of nutrition to their customers.
In addition to their custom feeds, they offer their own general rations of bagged feed on the floor, the majority of what they sell being beef rations. Their hog and laying mash rations are created with smaller farmer in mind and are able to provide quality nutrition for backyard pork and egg production in a bagged form.
Business Philosophy: At Arrowhead Milling, the staff focuses on providing excellent customer service, and do their best to offer a competitive price. They also work to ensure their delivery is up to the highest standard. “We pride ourselves on getting there when we say we’re going to get there, with a consistent mix that is exactly what the customer wants,” Carter said.
