Rural Farm Supply Stores as a Prepping Resource

What if I told the reader there is a certain store someone could go to and obtain a wealth of information?  This is not the cooperate owned big box stores, such as Academy Sports and Outdoors or Wal-Mart.

We are talking about the locally owned and operated rural farm supply stores.  What about the farm supply stores sometimes found in cities?   There is a big difference between the rural and urban farm supply stores.

Urban farm stores are mostly going to sell decorations, tools, saws, lawnmowers… etc. They may not even sell livestock feed, chicks, or local farm fresh eggs.  These types of stores target people who live in an urban area but want their home to have a rural look to it.

Livestock

Rural farm supply stores sell livestock feed in bulk.  Customers who visit the rural stores typically have access to land where they raise chickens, guineas, cows, goats, and horses.

Let’s be honest.  Chances are people living in cities are not going to be buying very much livestock feed, or buying fertilizer by the ton.  There have been times when I brought home 500 pounds of chicken feed and 13-13-13 fertilizer, and that is a light trip for some people.  Customers to Circle Three Feed in Jasper, Texas will sometimes buy 1,000 pounds of horse feed at a time.

Besides inventory there is another resource the small town farm supply stores have to offer, and that is experience.

Several years ago a family I knew went to a big box farm store and bought some chicks.  When they asked about feed, the sales person sold them hen scratch, which chicks can not eat.  A few days later the chicks died from starvation.  The family called and asked why all of their chicks died, I asked a few questions, which is when they read the name off the side of the feed bag.

In other words, the sales person did not have the slightest idea of what they were doing.  Compare that to a rural farm supply store where the owners work at the store and have years of experience with various types of livestock.

Seeds and Fertilizer

Then there are the seeds and fertilizer.  Not very many people living in the city or urban areas will purchase seed by the pound to plant acres of land.  This is why most big box stores sell seeds by the packet.

In contrast, rural farm supply stores expect people to buy seeds (such as corn, peas and beans) by the pound, and fertilizer by the hundreds of pounds, maybe even by the ton.

This means if a survivalist wanted to stockpile seeds, they are going to be able to purchase seeds in bulk at the rural farm supply store.  There is nothing wrong with buying seed packets, but some people want to stockpile seeds in bulk.

As with the chick example from the big box farm supply store, people who work at the rural stores typically have a wealth of information about growing a garden.

Hunting

While the rural stores may not sell guns, they typically sell ammunition.  Combined with seeds and deer corn, the rural farm store should most of the stuff hunters need to get started.

On a personal note, when hunting season get near I typically pick up corn for the feeders here on the farm when I get chicken feed.

Typically, but not always, the corn found at the rural supply stores will be better quality than the deer corn sold at the big box mart outlet stores.  Notice the Lone Star brand name on the bags of deer corn.  Lone Star is a popular livestock feed.  So not only does Lone Star make deer corn, they also make chicken, cattle, horse, and goat feed.

Final Thoughts

Special thank you to Circle Three Feed in Jasper, Texas for letting me take pictures of their warehouse.  Is this article an advertisement for Circle Three?  Nope, not at all.  I have been doing business with them for years.  They are just an example of a rural farm supply store.

A great number of people have never stopped at a rural farm supply store, much less know what they have to offer.  For a prepper, this is an excellent and often overlooked resource.

Next time the reader is driving through a rural area and see a rural farm supply store, stop, go inside, and see what they have for sale.

Kevin Felts

Founder and owner of www.survivalistboards.com My blog - www.survivalboards.com Hobbies include fishing, hiking, hunting, blogging, sharing his politically incorrect opinion, video blogging on youtube, survivalism and spending time with his family.