GREAT FALLS — What started as a simple request for chicken feed has grown into a Great Falls business reaching customers across the country.(WATCH: Small start, growing reach — A Look at Eden Feeds)
Montana Ag Network: Small start, growing reach — A Look at Eden Feeds
Eden Feeds produces non-GMO livestock feed made with whole grains and without corn or soy. Co-owner Tom Kropf said the idea emerged after he and his wife moved to the Great Falls area from western Montana and could not find the specific feed they wanted.“She was like, ‘Make me some feed,’” Kropf said. “And then I had to turn it into a business idea.”Eden Feeds reached its first store in September 2019. Kropf said the business began with a small investment, grain stored in tote sacks and a used mixer that he bought for $250 and repaired.“People laughed at me when I drug it home, but I put thousands of tons through the thing,” Kropf said with a laugh. “And it worked.”The equipment has since improved, but Kropf said the company has maintained its original focus on recognizable ingredients. Eden Feeds keeps its products in whole-grain form instead of turning them into pellets.“There’s no mystery pellets in our feed,” Kropf said. “It’s all whole grains. You can hold it in your hand and see exactly what’s in it.”
MTN News
That formula places Eden Feeds in a specialized part of the livestock feed market. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, corn accounts for more than 95% of feed grain production and use nationwide.“Our formulas and recipes are always staying the same,” he said. “We’re not just buying whatever’s cheap and available. Our ingredients are staying the same, and so our feeds stay consistent.”Kropf said at least 95% of those ingredients come from Montana. The company sources grain from farmers in surrounding areas, including Pendroy and Fort Benton, along with limestone from near Bridger. Some components, including its mineral package, fish meal and certain amino acids, come from outside the state.Farmers store the grain until Eden Feeds needs it and then deliver it to the company’s Great Falls facility. From there, the grain moves through a roller mill before being measured and combined according to formulas developed with a nutritionist.“It’s kind of like making cookies. It’s just a large scale,” Kropf said.The finished feed is sent to a bagging line, where each bag is filled and sewn shut. The bags are then wrapped and loaded onto trucks for distribution.
MTN News
Janelle Allen, who uses Eden Feeds, says the ingredients and the company’s local connection were both part of the appeal. She began using Eden Feeds after getting chickens earlier this year.“I wanted to feed my chickens a natural food because the reason for getting chickens is we want their eggs,” Allen said. “We want homegrown, fresh eggs.”For Allen, purchasing the feed also allows her to support a Montana business and the farmers supplying many of its ingredients.“To get a food that is from our natural products that our farmers around produce is great,” she said. “It means a ton, especially to be able to help that local business.”Eden Feeds has expanded into North 40 Outfitters and Murdoch’s, along with other retailers. Its products are also available online through Chewy.For a business that began with secondhand equipment and a request to make feed at home, Kropf said the continued expansion is encouraging.“The future looks bright,” he said with a smile.