Summer 2018
Stockmen’s Report 223 Rodeo Ave. Caldwell, ID 83605 | 208-459-0777 | www.simplot.com/livestock_products
Great communication with our customers is key to our success as a business. It is our goal to keep you more informed than ever with this new seasonal newsletter!
Never a Dull Moment What Being a Retail Sales Manager Really Means
When it comes down to it, my team and I are problem solvers who help our customers’ lives be a little less stressful. That’s why we’ve committed to revamping our Caldwell Store this year to better serve the folks who choose our service. Specifically, we’ve expanded our storage for our weather-sensitive products. This construction allows us to increase our capacity and keep costs down for our customers. We’re also rearranging the store’s interior to help you find all the products you need. The sooner we can help you find what you’re looking for, the sooner you can get back to the things you care about. As a family man, I know how valuable our customers’ time is. As a father of two daughters, I usually spend my summers dancing around the sidelines of softball fields, cheering my girls on. My eldest, Kaylee, just graduated high school and is about to leave Idaho for college. As proud as I am to see her follow in her mother’s footsteps by studying to become a nurse, you can bet I’m going to make these last few months with her at home count! -Chad De Witt
So when I came over to the retail side of things from Simplot’s seed division, I faced a steep learning curve. Getting to know our customers, vendors, manufacturers, and the vast array of products we offer was a lot to take in. That’s what I love about this job; there’s never a dull moment. I get to learn and adapt to new challenges every day. I wouldn’t have time to watch paint dry even if I wanted to. One of the biggest challenges came in the midst of my shift into the retail world. As part of the One Simplot initiative, Western Stockmen’s Inc. transitioned to Simplot Western Stockmen’s. As with any rebranding, there were some road bumps — mainly confusion among longtime customers used to seeing “WSI” on their favorite products. Thankfully, we rolled with the punches and helped folks understand that we were still the same knowledgeable, compassionate team we’ve always been. Now that the dust has settled, I can say that Simplot Western Stockmen’s — and Simplot as a whole — is stronger than ever before. In my 5 1/2 years at the company, there’s never been a greater sense of unity among the different branches of Simplot. We’ve embodied the “farm to fork” mentality, collaborating across departments and partnerships to bring our customers the full support they deserve.
Growing up, I was never very good at sitting still. My family ran a successful painting business, but the work just wasn’t for me. I preferred working on my friend’s dairy farm, milking, baling hay, and feeding animals. It was hard work, but it kept me active and in motion, and it felt incredibly rewarding. To me, even mucking out the barn was better than watching paint dry. Today, as the retail sales manager for Simplot Western Stockmen’s, I keep those days on the farm close at heart. I’ve seen how much time, effort, and care goes into raising livestock, and I know how stressful it can be when an issue occurs. Nothing feels better than when our team can put a customer’s mind at ease. To provide that kind of effective customer service, it takes knowledge.
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Meet De My name is Dean Hibbs, and I’m the dairy sales representative for the Yakima Valley and Columbia Basin region. As a part of the J.R. Simplot Company, Western Stockmen’s is diversified. We can make a calf from an embryo, raise her, feed her for her whole life, and then use the entire animal at CS Beef Packers to further benefit our customers. It’s pretty amazing. Simplot is good to their people and has a good reputation for building solid business relationships, so when I had the chance to sign on two years ago, I took it. Originally, I’m from Reno, Nevada. I currently live in Richland, Washington, and when I’m not working to help raise healthy animals,
Doc Talks: Caring for Calves
Summer pneumonia is a respiratory problem seen in calves while they are still nursing. By the time herds are out on pasture, the new calves are old enough to have lost the protection of antibodies from their mothers. This is when they are vulnerable to the severe infections that cause pneumonia. Both viruses and bacteria can cause summer pneumonia in calves and stunt their growth. This can be a major problem because treatments for each contributing factor do not overlap. Antibiotics are only effective against bacteria, and the intranasal vaccines that fight viral infection might not give a long-lasting effect. Coccidiosis, mineral deficiency, poor quality feed, and weather stress all act as contributing factors. To make matters worse, the cattle in the northwest region of the U.S. run in large areas, making it difficult to observe all calves on a daily basis. Calves are often sick for several days before they are treated. So what is the plan for when calves are already infected? For a conventional program, I recommend using long-lasting antibiotics in tangent with vaccinating with Inforce 3. Banamine (flunixin meglumine) is also important, as it helps reduce fever and inflammation associated with summer pneumonia. Zactran (gamithromycin), Zuprevo (tildipirosin), Draxxin (tulathromycin), Nuflor (florfenicol), and Liquamycin LA 200 (terramycin) are good examples of long-lasting antibiotics. If your calves are facing severe infections, consider using an antibiotic that works very rapidly, such as Baytril 100 (enrofloxacin). If incidence of disease reaches 10–15 percent, it would be more efficient to mass-treat all calves as a preventative measure. Health issues like these put natural beef producers in a precarious position, with treatment options being very limited. For a natural program, it would be best to vaccinate calves with Inforce 3 and supplement them with vitamins A and D to boost their immune systems. If the incidence of disease is high, treat all calves with this program as soon as possible. In some cases, calves have to be treated with antibiotics and marked to go into a conventional program. -Dick Fredrickson, DVM
Get the Inside Scoop With Sim Last year, we wanted to evaluate how we connect with our customers. Our Facebook page had been steadily growing and remains a method for us to reach out to the public, but we felt that we lacked a way to directly message our customers. Most of the folks who shop at our store are not social media users and would not be affected if we spread our reach to other websites like Twitter or Instagram. Using traditional mail could be costly since we planned to contact customers on at least a monthly basis. Email is utilized by many of our customers, and email messages received on cellphones behave like text messages. Most importantly, email is more direct than social media and more agile than traditional mail. With these aspects in mind, we set up an email list. Physical and online sign-up forms were made, and our stores took on the challenge of collecting completed forms. For extra incentive, we added a $5 voucher for any new subscriber to use on their next purchase. Hundreds have signed up, and we hope to continue pushing for more as we head into county fair season! The 4H and FFA members who purchase our feed and compete at the fairs have more communication options and can now hear back from us sooner. WHY NOT TRY EMAIL?
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n Hibbs I’m enjoying my time fishing, hunting, camping, gardening, and relaxing with my wife and three daughters. I feel that I have a deep understanding of dairy producers and the operations they manage. I approach every day with the goal of helping dairymen fix those problem areas. Most salesmen only take orders, and that bugs me. My style is to dig a little deeper and help animals stay healthy. I work for the cows and their producers. Period. I love connecting with producers and solving their problems. I currently have a customer who sends their calves to a grower. When the grower was losing too many of the calves, I stepped in, worked with the crew, and made several changes. Colostrum quality and administration and sanitization of the hutches and bedding improved significantly, and product was added to treat and prevent scours. Now, the calves are much healthier and are doing well. It was a huge win for the customer. When you work with Simplot Western Stockmen’s, you can expect our service to be the No. 1 priority. Everyone might say they value customer service, but we commit to it. We pick up the phone, deliver when promised, and actively communicate when you have problems.
Want to contact me? You can give me a call at 509-420-3320 or email me at dean.hibbs@simplot.com. lot Emails Through email, subscribers receive monthly specials for their SWS store early, learn additional health information about their animals, and are the first to hear news about Simplot. Our goal is to avoid spamming customers with sale after sale and only include information that is relevant to them. We don’t just want to talk to you. We want to talk with you because great things happen when we hear from our customers. For example, if a grand champion is crowned at their county fair using our feed, they can send pictures of their victory to our staff. Photos are then added to our company calendar and included with our 4H program rewards. We now have the ability to better inform customers of new services we provide. Whether it be preordering chicks in Sunnyside or new bulk-product options in Jerome, email subscribers have useful inside information to make the best purchasing decisions possible when they visit their SWS store. If you would like to become an email subscriber, pick up a sign-up form at one of our stores or visit www.simplot.com/livestock_products/save_and_subscribe and fill it out online!
CHIMICHURRI-MARINATED STRIP FILETS
Recipe by: beefitswhatsfordinner.com
Ingredients • 4 beef strip
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated lemon peel • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 cup packed fresh parsley • 1/4 cup olive oil • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice • 1/2 teaspoon salt
filets, cut 1 inch thick (about 4–6 ounces each)
• 2 cloves garlic • 1/2 cup packed fresh cilantro
Directions
1. To prepare chimichurri sauce, place garlic in food processor container. Cover and process until finely chopped. Add remaining sauce ingredients. Cover and process until well-blended. Remove and refrigerate 1/4 cup sauce for serving. 2. In a food-safe plastic bag, place beef filets and remaining sauce; turn steaks to coat. Close bag securely and marinate in refrigerator 15 minutes to 2 hours. 3. Remove filets from marinade; discard marinade. Place filets on grill over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 12–15 minutes (on gas grill, over medium heat 10–13 minutes) for medium-rare (145 F) to medium (160 F) doneness, turning occasionally.
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PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
223 Rodeo Ave. Caldwell, ID 83605 208-459-0777 | www.simplot.com
Inside
1
Get to Know Chad De Witt
2
Meet Dean Hibbs
3
Get the Inside Scoop With Simplot Emails
Chimichurri-Marinated Strip Filets
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Corn Market Outlook for 2018/19
Corn Market Outlook for 2018/19
creates big swings in the price outlook. This is why weather is going to be the main focus for traders in the next couple of months. Planting progress for corn is currently behind at 59 percent compared to a five-year average of 63 percent. If the Midwest is able to get some windows of dry weather, they shouldn’t have an issue catching up and getting the crop planted. Rain this time of year is always a catch-22. It delays planting progress, but it also helps soil conditions and could set the stage for stronger yields. Overall, this is a market where the current corn price seems fundamentally accurate given the information above. The question this time of year is how accurate do we feel the USDA estimates are going to be? Nobody has a crystal ball, so having a good risk-management strategy in place is essential. There is a risk of loss in futures and options trading. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.
May’s USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Report (WASDE) was the first time the USDA put out an estimated balance sheet for the 2018/19 crop. U.S. corn carryover is estimated to be at 1.68 billion bushels for the 2018/19 marketing year. To put this in perspective, our 2017/18 carryover was 2.18 billion bushels. World corn ending stocks were estimated at 159.15 million metric tons for 2018/19. The 2017/18 ending stocks were at 194.85 million metric tons. The lower estimated outlook for ending stocks worldwide is largely due to lower U.S. production as well as a reduction in Brazil and Argentina’s production. The ending stock numbers are favorable for farmers and are the reason we have already seen the price increases in the market so far this year. The USDA is estimating the corn yield to be at 174 bushels per acre. This is down from last year’s 176.6 bushels per acre. Keep in mind that nobody really knows what that final yield number will be. A small increase or decrease in the yield can have a big impact on the balance sheet and, in turn,
Store Locations
Caldwell Store 208-459-0806 101 Rodeo Ave. Caldwell, ID 83605 Burley Store 208-878-7224 1001 W. Main St. Burley, ID 83318
Jerome Store 208-733-6145 1100 W. Main St. Jerome, ID 83338 Sunnyside Store 509-836-0267 304 Yakima Valley Highway Sunnyside, WA 98944
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