BALTIC, OHIO, US — Gerber & Sons, Inc. is building a new feed mill in Baltic, Ohio, US, that will help double its annual processing capacity of 1.65 million bushels of corn and consolidate 500,000 bushels of storage that is currently spread across five sites.
The mill will include a building with automated equipment for processing and packaging, and a facility for grinding, mixing and loading feed onto trucks. Construction is underway, and the new site is expected to open later this year.
Gerber & Sons first started operations in 1905, producing custom feed mix and bulk feed for local livestock and poultry farmers.
It currently mixes, processes and packages its products by hand without modern automation. Teams of 14 employees work two 10-hour shifts daily to meet demand that has expanded to more than 2,300 farmers within a 100-mile radius.
Feed production has grown from 23,000 short tons in its first year to 100,000 tons now. A new, modern mill was needed to keep up with increasing demand, said Seth Gerber, company president and general manager.
The company collaborated with Ohio’s US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development team and The Commercial & Savings Bank to secure two loan guarantees through USDA’s Business and Industry Loan program.
Gerber & Sons received a $20.5 million guaranteed loan to pay for construction and associated costs and a $4.5 million guaranteed loan to purchase new equipment to modernize the mill.
“Working with USDA has been a tremendous benefit,” Seth Gerber said. “They’ve helped us secure financing; they’ve helped us be able to purchase state-of-the-art equipment for our feed mill that will benefit the farmer and the customer so we can produce quality, consistent feed for our customers.”
