West Dakota Feed and Seed LLC was conceived in 1998 in a cafe in Stanley, North Dakota. Six local farmers were having coffee one day, discussing the future of farming. Although the crops were good the producers worried that problems lay ahead. They wanted to do something to help the area farmers. The farmers began meeting on Monday mornings to figure out what they could do.
Construction on the plant began in August 1998 and was finished in February 1999. It was designed with "gentle handling" features to reduce losses from broken or split seeds and keep grain quality high. The plant was also designed to be cleaned easily to prevent mixtures from different lots of seed. The plant has 30,000 bushel storage capacity. The six farmers feel that these features can help make a successful seed plant which will help solve the problem of handling seeds in western North Dakota.
The farmers realized that a problem in western North Dakota is the lack of places to handle seeds, especially specialty crops. Rotating specialty crops with small grains is becoming a common method of disease prevention. Specialty crops can also be very profitable. The six farmers researched the problem for a year and decided that a seed plant near Ross, North Dakota was the best solution. They gained financing and West Dakota Feed and Seed was born.
Field Days
Customers of West Dakota Feed and Seed are invited in July to the plant for an annual appreciation "Field Days" BBQ supper cooked by the owners.
