Kendra’s Chili

When Alex Anderson isn’t helping IFA co-op members, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Kendra, and their daughter, Haidyn. Haidyn is following in her father’s footsteps as a livestock exhibitor showing steers and lambs. Alex and his daughter choose IFA’s Platinum Show Feed Line to help her animals excel in the show ring. While Haidyn’s show animals might prefer an IFA quality feed, Alex prefers a steaming bowel of his wife’s savory chili.

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef
1 lb ground sausage (mild)
½ lb bacon
1 can of Kidney Beans
1 can of Chili Beans
1 can of Pinto Beans
1 can of Black Beans
2- 28 oz cans of diced tomatoes with juice
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
1 large yellow onion
2 cups of beef stock
3 TBS chili powder
1 TBS Worcestershire sauce
1 TBS minced garlic
1 TBS dried oregano
2 TBS ground cumin
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp salt/pepper
1 tsp paprika
¼ to ½ cup brown sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)

Directions:

Brown ground beef & sausage in large pot. Salt & Pepper. In another pan cook bacon then add onions when bacon is ½ done. (Tip: add a spoonful of brown sugar to caramelize bacon/onions a little) Add bacon & onions to large pot.
Add Beans (rinsed), tomatoes, tomato paste, & stock, then heat through.
Add all seasonings and bring to boil. Turn heat to low and simmer for at least 1-2 hours, stirring every so often. The longer it simmers, the better it is!
Serve with: Fritos, Cheese, & Sour cream

Adding Value to IFA Co-op Members

For more than 15 years, Alex Anderson has been involved in selling, transporting, and producing nutritious livestock feeds.

Anderson began his livestock nutrition career with Cache Commodities, another Utah-based feed mill. When the Intermountain Farmers Association cooperative acquired Cache Commodities in 2023, Anderson brought his wealth of industry experience and knowledge to the co-op.

Anderson learned many things in his transition from Cache Commodities to IFA. For one, he learned the importance of pulling the right levers, literally.

“I was learning how to mix late one night and didn't follow our own protocols and put a lot of brand in the basement that had to be cleaned up one bucket at a time,” Anderson says. “That was pretty memorable and a good way to learn we do have protocols for reason.”

When Anderson came to IFA, he had to learn a new automated feed mill system that helps IFA make safe and consistent feed mixes. He also learned about the benefits of farm cooperatives.

“A co-op is a group of members that come together to work and buy in larger volumes,” Anderson says. As a farmer-owned cooperative, IFA is owned and governed by the farmers and ranchers who rely on the products and services that the co-op provides.

Anderson says that since coming to IFA, he’s learned more about how a cooperative works and how it benefits all members. One example he points out is that being a part of the cooperative gives farmers more purchasing power that helps make necessary farm and ranch purchases such as feed, seed, and fertilizer more affordable.

Another benefit of co-op membership that Anderson mentions is that members receive a return when the cooperative is profitable. “I like the fact that if IFA is successful, we're successful for the co-op members and the return goes back to them.”

Providing co-op members with resources and knowledge is a top priority for IFA. As Branch Manager of the IFA North region Feed Mill, Anderson has a hand in making sure that IFA’s members are receiving the best quality feeds at prices that are advantageous to them as stakeholders in the cooperative.

“Seeing the success of the co-op and understanding how a co-op works for its members encourages me to want to stay at IFA,” Anderson says.

Anderson likes seeing the effort he puts into his position with the IFA feed division go back to the growers and members who rely of IFA as a farm cooperative. He believes the cooperative status that IFA has held for more than a century sets it apart as a preeminent resource for agriculture producers.