The Kent Nutrition Group is an animal nutrition company based in Muscatine, Iowa. It operates under the brands Kent and Blue Seal and is a subsidiary of the Kent Corporation.

Kent Nutrition Group
Company typePrivate
IndustryAgriculture, Livestock and Pet nutrition
Founded2010
Headquarters,
Area served
United States
Key people
Gage Anthony Kent (owner)
Mike Gauss (president)
Products
OwnerGage Anthony Kent, via Kent Corporation
Number of employees
2,000[1]
ParentKent Corporation
Divisions
  • Kent
  • Blue Seal
Websitekentnutritiongroup.com

History

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Kent Nutrition Group was founded in 2010 in a corporate consolidation of two separate regional nutrition companies — Kent (established in 1927) and Blue Seal (established in 1868) — under the Kent Corporation.[2][3] The original president, Rich Dwyer, led the feed division for its first year of operations[2][4] and in 2011, John Thorpe become the president of Kent Nutrition Group.[5]

In 2016, the company acquired Deluxe Feeds, another Iowa-based feed company. The assets in the deal included Deluxe Feeds' retail stores, feed mills, and its Midwest EnRG Flakes operations.[6] In June 2017, the company announced a $37-million expansion of the Deluxe Feeds plant in Sheldon, Iowa.[7] It broke ground on the expansion in September 2017.[8] The following month, the Kent Nutrition Group opened a new swine research facility at their 800-acre Product Development Center in Muscatine County.[9]

In 2019, Mike Gauss was appointed as President, replacing John Thorpe who became President and COO of Kent’s parent company, Kent Corporation.[10]

Brands

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Kent

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Kent Feeds was founded by Gage A. Kent in Indianola, Iowa in 1927, where he used a mill to manufacture cattle feed. The company's first product, "Kent Baby Beef," was marketed as a cattle feed with high protein and no filler. A fire destroyed the original mill in Indianola and eventually Kent moved the company to a new plant in Muscatine, Iowa. In 1952, the company built a new plant in Muscatine. Between 1946 and 1964, Kent grew by 700%.[11][12]

In 1988, Varied Investments (which would later become Muscatine Foods and, eventually, Kent Corporation) acquired H.K. Webster Company of Lawrence, Massachusetts, renaming it Blue Seal Feeds.[13] At that time, both Kent Feeds and Blue Seal Feeds were operating as subsidiaries of Varied Investments.[14] In 2001, Kent Feeds president Jack May resigned and was replaced by Gage A. Kent, the grandson of the company's founder.[15] Kent sells commercial animal and show feeds primarily in the Midwest and nearby regions.[16][17][18][19]

Blue Seal

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Blue Seal Feeds was founded as the H. K. Webster Company in 1868 in Lawrence, Massachusetts by Henry K. Webster. Webster had rented a small gristmill to produce animal feed[14][20] and grain products. His son Dean K. Webster began selling products under the "Blue Seal" brand name.[21] In 1941, H.K. Webster Company expanded by acquiring a Quaker Oats plant in Richford, Vermont.[22] By 1954, the company was earning $15 million in annual revenue and Ralph Kingman Webster, H.K. Webster's great-grandson, joined the company.[14][20]

By 1988, the firm had grown to eight plants and seventeen retail stores in New England producing $150 million in annual revenue.[20] That year, Varied Investments (which would later become Muscatine Foods and, eventually, the Kent Corporation) acquired the H.K. Webster Company[3][11][23] and officially renamed it "Blue Seal Feeds."[24] Blue Seal moved its headquarters to a new facility in Londonderry, New Hampshire in 1994.[25] In 2008, the company acquired the I.L. Richer Company, another feed company based in New York.[26]

Blue Seal produces a number of branded items, including pet foods and animal feed as well as a line of lawn and garden products. Blue Seal products are primarily sold in the Northeast and along the Eastern Seaboard. Blue Seal also operates several retail stores in New England.[25][18][27]

References

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  1. ^ "Kent Corporation – Companies".
  2. ^ a b "Muscatine Foods Merges Subsidiaries To Create Kent Nutrition Group". Pet Product News. July 29, 2010. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Muscatine Foods changes name to Kent Corp". Quad-City Times. March 27, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  4. ^ "Muscatine Foods forms Kent Nutrition Group". WATTAgNet. September 14, 2010. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  5. ^ "Gold Star Feed And Grain 'Unhooked' From Kent Nutrition". American Agriculturist. March 23, 2014. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  6. ^ Demaree, Holly (September 28, 2016). "Kent Nutrition Group to acquire Deluxe Feeds". World Grain. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  7. ^ Rushing, Ty (June 22, 2017). "Kent Feeds division planning $37M expansion in Sheldon". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  8. ^ Lawrence, Tom (September 16, 2017). "Deluxe Feeds breaks ground on $37M expansion". The N'West Iowa REVIEW. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  9. ^ "Kent Nutrition Group launches new swine facility". National Hog Farmer. October 10, 2017. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  10. ^ "Kent Nutrition Makes Staffing Changes". Pet Business. 4 January 2019.
  11. ^ a b "Muscatine grain company buys New England firm". The Des Moines Register. January 11, 1989. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  12. ^ Morrison, Patricia (July 25, 1997). "Firm has grown greatly in 70 years". The Vincennes Sun-Commercial. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  13. ^ Ehrlich, Jennifer (September 30, 2004). "Blue Seal Feeds beefs up for changing times". Boston Globe.
  14. ^ a b c Muhm, Don (February 3, 1991). "Kent Feeds shows it's a survivor". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  15. ^ "President resigns for health reasons". Quad-City Times. October 18, 2001. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  16. ^ Danley-Greiner, Kristin (March 4, 2015). "Kent approaching 50 years in Altoona". The Altoona Herald. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  17. ^ Samuelson, Orion; Armstrong, Max (June 23, 2018). "This Week in Agribusiness - June 23, 2018". Farm Futures. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  18. ^ a b "Kent team recognized for achievement". Feedstuffs. May 26, 2016. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  19. ^ "Kent Nutrition Group appoints swine feed product manager". WATTAgNet. April 27, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  20. ^ a b c Eddings, Keith (December 18, 2015). "A millionaire who made a difference". The Andover Townsman. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  21. ^ Arrington, Benj. F. (1922). Municipal History of Essex County in Massachusetts. Vol. 3. Lewis Historical Publishing Company.
  22. ^ "Feed Management". Garden State Publishing Company. 1982.
  23. ^ Martz, Pam (August 14, 2005). "Area company gets new name". Quad-City Times. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  24. ^ "Muscatine investment firm buys, renames feed manufacturer". Quad-City Times. January 11, 1989. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  25. ^ a b Weeks, Jacklynn (November 23, 2009). "Blue Seal Feeds Corporate Headquarters". Town of Londonderry. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  26. ^ "Two 19th century feed companies to merge". The Burlington Free Press. January 17, 2008. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  27. ^ "Blue Seal Feeds Inc". Pet Product News. March 5, 2007. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
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