OPTIMISM: Pursue 2021 in optimistic light!
Agri-Best Feeds To be assistance to local producers’
CALLAWAY - At Agri-Best in Callaway, co-owner Dean Haidle is ready for 2021. “We’re encouraged by how 2020 went,” Haidle said. “We’re optimistic that 2021 will be great and pursue it in
that light.” Haidle co-owns Agri-Best Feeds with his siblings and mother who are in Billings, Mont., at company headquarters.
Agri-Best is ranch focused and sells most anything that a rancher or farmer would need for livestock - from gloves, ear tags and chutes to panels, feed and supplements. “Our goal is to be of assistance to the producers out there, helping fill the gaps and providing solutions on feed and growth,” Haidle said.
Despite the challenges of the past several months, 2020 went well for AgrBest. Haidle chalks it up to investing in good employees. “We’ve been very blessed with a fantastic sales team,” he said. “We want to provide the best.”
The business was started in Montana by Haidle’s father, Irv. Agri-Best now has dealers in five states - Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota and
Nebraska.
Haidle said that more supplements were needed in 2020 because it was a drier fall. Though he is looking forward to 2021, he recognizes the volatility of the markets. “If we see corn on the uprise, that usually means cattle prices go down,” he said.
Distillers, Haidle said, plays an important role in good health and growth of livestock. Agri-Best sells distillers products along with cattle feed, salt and minerals and cattle handling equipment. Last year, they added the Arrowquip line of chutes, cattle tubs and alleys. “It’s proven to be an amazing product,” Haidle said.
For producers to successfully meet the challenges of any year, let alone one following a year of a pandemic, Haidle says it’s important that producers have a plan. While Agri-Best usually has most any product on hand, like any business, they gauge inventory by supply and demand. For cattlemen who are thinking about building a corral or updating existing equipment, have a plan, Haidle recommends, and contact your supplier to make sure inventory will be available on your timeline.
Something that cattle producers may want to buy sooner rather than later, Haidle said, are ear tags. “We’ve been told there might be delays in getting them,” he said
Also available at Agri-Best are Redmond salt and minerals and SweetPro Premium Feed supplements for cattle and calves, horses, sheep and goat. When you walk into the warehouse, you will see many of the products marked with the ingredient of garlic. “It aids significantly in fly control,” Haidle said.
There’s something for everyone at Agri-Best. They also sell Dryshod boots, Real Salt products (including onion, garlic and seasoned salt) and colloidal silver.
Haidle’s full time job is being pastor at the Callaway Community Church. “I’m here to help and support Tom,” he said, meaning Tom Kennedy, store manager. Haidle’s wife, Shanna, who handles finances, is the other full time employee. Mack Deveraux is part-time. Jeremy Jones is the regional sales manager for equine products and Vince Guthrie is the regional sales manager for cattle and other livestock. “We have quality personnel to help provide support and education and customer service,” he said. With 2021 well under way, AgriBest is ready to help producers meet any challenges thrown their way. “We are very proactive with what we sell,” he said. “Our goal is to be a benefit to the farmer and rancher. We want to provide the best for the farmers and ranchers in the region we cover.”