April 2025 Newsletter
- Claire Christensen
- Apr 1
- 4 min read
Employee Spotlight: Katelyn Pitts
Spencer Ag Center extends a warm welcome to our newest bookkeeper on the team. Katelyn Pitts, originally from Rembrandt, Iowa, has a background in livestock production and a degree in Ag Business from Iowa Lakes. A jack-of-all-trades, she grew up raising and showing goats, sheep, rabbits, and pigs at the Clay County Fair. She now spends her time on the Clay County Sheep Committee and is excited to be involved at Spencer Ag Center, where the production and show sides of the industry coexist. If you are in the office, introduce yourself! Katelyn is looking forward to getting to know our local producers better. We are thrilled to have Katelyn join our team.
Market Update — Tariffs
Purchasers: Casey Lawson & Paul Behrens
While many things are still unknown, as of mid-March, tariffs seem to be changing on a daily basis. Tariffs between companies are not the same, depending on purchasing price and when the product arrives in the USA. They are very confusing, which is another reason why there are differences between the various companies we purchase from. They also vary on which country it comes from or if it passes through from one country to another before it gets to the USA. This past month, tariffs have varied, with some ingredients receiving additional charges and some shipments receiving none.
What does this mean for the customer?
If a tariff gets applied to products coming in, there will be a price change that may affect ingredient pricing. This results in a trickled down effect with the manufacturer, seller, purchaser, and farmers all bearing the weight of this price change. We all need to work together to get through this challenging time, and at Spencer Ag Center, we believe just that. We are committed to helping our customers and giving them the best prices we can so we can all thrive together in the future.
Elevating our Service!
WVC Conference—Kyle Long, Vet Assistant
From March 2nd-5th, Kyle Long attended the annual vet conference put on by Viticus Group. During this conference, he attended a number of seminars, including BQA, Animal Welfare, Biosecurity Planning, and various other lectures.
Kyle noted several interesting speakers, including Cooper Hibbard, a Montanna Rancher raising composite cattle. This speaker expressed the value of selecting genetics based on regional traits and making intentional choices that consider herd improvements across generations. Quoting the “how we’ve always done it” attitude to be a hindrance towards risk taking advancements for the benefit of your herd.
In addition to ranch management, Kyle found the welfare talk to be a rewarding seminar, as it opened the discussion with animal welfare taking priority over economics. The quality of life should bear more importance than cost input. Paired with this discussion, the speaker mentioned technological innovations that benefit health. Below are some products mentioned at the talk that Spencer Ag Center carries!
Lidobands
a lidocaine-coated band for numbing during castration
Ferappease
If you have any interest in these products or would like to learn more about the key takeaways from the WVC conference, don’t hesitate to reach out to Kyle
or your field marketer!
Dairy Beef Short Course - Sioux Falls, SD
Field Marketers Lee Geerdes, Joel Thomsen, Andrew Quail, and Tim Christensen attended this training on March 25th. The training covered several topics, ranging from Vaccination Management to dairy Crossbred Research in Feedlots and Hoof-Related Lameness in Feedlots. I-29 Moo University, a collaboration between North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Iowa State Extension, and industry professionals, put on this course.
One of the notable discussions, per our field marketers, was the Implant Strategies seminars. Zachary Smith, PhD, spoke on this topic, which brought clarity to the recent USDA guideline rulings for implantation. With Synovex Choice being approved label-wise for reimplantation, certain producers found a need for single implant studies with competing implant brands. His research shows that one implant of Revalor XS results in the same effectiveness as cattle implanted with Synovex Choice once and reimplanted with Synovex Feedlot.
Regardless of what our producers select, we can ensure their compliance with the several brands we carry,
including:
· Zoetis’ Synovex
· Merck’s Ralgro and Revalor
· Elanco’s Encore
Destron Fearing: Cattle Tag Shortage
Manufacturers have reached out to consumers to let them know that they will no longer be manufacturing
Destron Fearing’s Duflex Cattle Tags. As for right now, no official statement has been released regarding if this discontinuation is pivoting towards a re-release of the improved product or pivoting towards fully merging with Merck’s technology as Allflex becomes the primary tag brand offered. (Allflex, owned by Merck Animal Heath, acquired Destron Fearing’s corporation in 2011.)
Due to the discontinuation, Spencer Ag Center will no longer be carrying Destron Fearing/Duflex ear tags. To replace this product, we carry Allflex Large and Maxi size tags and Z Tags, and we can order any specialty tags you may need. There are still Duflex products in stock.
Please reach out if interested in purchasing while supplies last. We may have discounted tag rates for these specific products!
Mark your Calendars!
National Administrative Professionals Day — April 24th
We want to thank our administrative professionals: Julie, Jen, Marcia, Connie, and Katelyn for their contribution to our team. These women are responsible for all of our record and bookkeeping and keeping our business running like a well-oiled machine—from confirming lot number on every product that goes out of the store and handling every customer’s bill, to recording individualized farm record-keeping for barn turns. We appreciate them greatly!
World Veterinary Day—April 26th
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