Branded for Quality
Nutrition Plus is not just another mineral company. Yes, Nutrition Plus is a livestock supplement and feed company, offering protein and mineral supplements, but it’s much more than that to those who work here. The company sets itself apart from the rest with the people it employs and supports.
“We are a regional company, based out of Canyon, Texas, but serving all of Texas, parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, and Oklahoma,” says Nutrition Plus Vice President Dee Church. “We sell and distribute loose mineral and protein products to farmers and ranchers.”
What’s So Special?
There are two major qualities that set Nutrition Plus apart from its competitors.
#1: Nutrition Plus is employee-owned.
In 2003, there were a handful of Southwest region mineral sales representatives who had an idea, explains Church. “They had a dream that they could take care of their customers and friends better by creating a company of their own—a company that is rooted in providing the highest quality product available at an unmatched level of service.”
And that’s how Nutrition Plus was born. Eight owners pitched in their own money to start the company with the goal of providing a quality product and superior customer service.
“Each of the owners were and still are producers themselves. They believed if they could create a product that matched their needs and concerns within their own operations, it would sell itself within the marketplace. This idea has proven to be true because we still sell that same quality product today,” Church explains. “They quit their salaried jobs, took a leap of faith, and started this company and it’s grown ever since.”
He adds that the company began with just eight guys handling the sales and one lady in the office with a notepad and a cellphone, who is still there today. The company utilizes 43 sales reps to help market and distribute the product and about seven more support staff members serving 1,200 to 1,500 customers.
Although the company has grown, it still prides itself on serving the needs of the customers first.
#2: The second thing that sets Nutrition Plus apart is that the sales reps are users of the products themselves.
Although there are a few full-time sales reps, most are part-time, and all representatives are also producers in the livestock industry. Whether they’re sheep or goat farmers, cattlemen or horsemen, all those who sell Nutrition Plus products are personally invested in the livestock industry.
“We understand what everybody is going through every day because we’re going through it too. We buy and use our own products for our livestock,” Church explains.
The Product
Although Nutrition Plus starts with a baseline product, the sales reps use forage, hay, and water samples to custom blend a ration for any customer that is in need.
“We pride ourselves on service and a feed substance that is fit for each ranch individually,” Church says. “We create a custom mineral mix or tub for the rancher’s herd. This blend fits the specific nutritional needs of that herd based on the deficiencies of that rancher’s feed program. Since our company structure is set up the way it is, we can quickly and easily get the right people involved to fix any nutritional problem producers have. We pride ourselves on taking care of our customers by being able to pull from multiple sources to create a product that cows, horses, and livestock animals alike will consistently consume and consistently perform with.”
He adds that Nutrition Plus gets ingredients from multiple manufacturers which allows the company to research and pick the best products for the best price. The result is that clients get the highest quality products at an affordable price.
“Our mission statement at Nutrition Plus is to ‘Provide quality products with quality service, to help producers raise quality livestock.’ You will get this from all our employees. We all believe that each of us has an important role in this industry to preserve our way of life and support those that live it with us every day,” Church says.
Giving Back
Nutrition Plus has long recognized the commitment WRCA has to its members, says Church. The company has been a proud sponsor of WRCA since the company was formed.
“We believe in what WRCA is doing,” Church says. “We believe in supporting ranchers and beef producers. Those are our customers and that is who we are and what we do.”
Giving back to the livestock community by supporting the association and especially the foundation, he says, helps everyone in the long run to produce beef.
He continues, “A lot of the people involved with WRCA enjoy the association for the help it provides to the working ranch cowboy, along with the opportunities it presents for them to show their talents; and we agree. We enjoy going to the rodeos and supporting our customers. We even have a youth rodeo team with the name ‘Nutrition Plus that is made up of kids of our sales representatives and customers. We know how hard these guys work every day to sharpen their skills and it is fun to watch them cut up and compete in the arena. We want to thank WRCA for all that they do for the industry and we are proud to be a part of it.”
For more on Nutrition Plus, log on to nutritionplus.biz.
This article appears in issue 75 of The Hungry Loop. Want to stay in the loop? Become a member at any level to receive the newsletter! Join up at wrca.org/membership.