Meet Dr. Brandon Koch May 5, 2019 November 19, 2019 KNG Beef Nutritionist As a little boy in Nebraska, Brandon Koch remembers being allowed to miss a week of kindergarten to ride in tractors and help harvest silage β an experience he says likely ignited his passion for production agriculture. A couple years later he started showing calves for 4-H, and while he didnβt pay a whole lot of attention to feed products back then, he was familiar with the Kent name. Decades later when Koch went to work for Kent Nutrition Group (KNG), his grandfather reminded him why: 34% Baby Beef β the original Kent feed that started it all. βIt was the first feed, back in 1927 that put Kent on the map,β Koch says. βMy grandfather fed it to my auntβs show cattle. We still make it, we still sell it . . . itβs still βthe feed without the fillerβ.β Koch (pronounced βCookβ) went to work for Kent after earning his PhD in Animal and Veterinary Sciences from Clemson University. Vice President of Nutrition and Product Development Bruce Read scheduled a 30-minute meet-and-greet with Koch, but their talk stretched into a 4.5-hour interview that left him convinced he had found the perfect company partner. βWhen I was going through schooling, I remember always thinking, βI am not going to have a job unless people are producing cattle, and they have to be profitable or theyβre not going to produce cattle,ββ Koch says. βEverything we do at Kent is driven to make sure our customers are profitable. Thatβs what I like about working here.β As Beef Nutritionist, Koch focuses on all phases of the beef industry, including product formulation, development, research and technical service β the latter of which he truly enjoys. Assisting producers directly, whether over the phone or in person, keeps the work βreal,β he says. If a producer has a question, they can call Koch directly for answers. And he makes doctorβs rounds too, routinely traveling to operations in the Midwest and Eastern regions whenever feedlot questions come up, or to help with general nutrition concerns such as diet guidelines or treatment plans. Heβs not exactly a lab coat kind of guy. Most days Koch wears slacks, boots and a buttoned-up shirt and can be found at his desk, working on formulations and research reports. But a good part of his time is spent in jeans outside, working at KNGβs 800-acre Product Development Center, or surveying pastures and pens of cattle on service calls. βSome days Iβm weighing cattle in the morning, then changing and coming into the office in the afternoon,β Koch says. βThereβs not a single day thatβs like another one.β With many of his cousins still running family cattle operations in Nebraska, Koch says his work in education and animal nutrition extends to their future as producers. As parents and grandparents retire, Koch sees an increase in younger generations coming back to the farm, and expectations for βWhatβs next? Whatβs new?β are growing. βKent wouldnβt be here after 91 years if we didnβt adapt with the times and grow,β Koch says. βEven when we have a great product thatβs worked consistently for years, weβre still pushing to innovate. Thatβs what we do.β Dr. Brandon Koch lives with his wife Louisa, and two self-sufficient cats in Port Byron, Illinois. He enjoys spending time with his family, being outside and traveling. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Print Email Related Posts Jillianβs #MyTrustStory for Kent Feeds Read how Rooster and Forrest β Jillianβs rehabilitated standardbreds β inspired the recent opening of Peaceful Haven Farm, where horses can regain a healthy mind, body and soul, thanks in… Read More Charlyβs #MyTrustStory for Kent Feeds Barrel-racing quarter horses, frisbee-obsessed aussie/collies and an O.G. lady (a.k.a. an elderly layer hen) named Gwenny β they mean everything to Charly, the teacher turned stay-at-home mom who runs Forever… Read More Meet Mary Schroeder β Senior Formulations Manager Mary Schroeder oversees a formulation team that works with Kentβs nutritionists to develop new products, deliver new formulas to manufacturing facilities and evaluate costs for each ingredient. Read More