Hubbard Mills Presented By Ryan Kirchner Aaron Pilger

Hubbard Mills Presented By: Ryan Kirchner Aaron Pilger

Hubbard Mills n In 1878, a business that was to become Mankato’s largest industry was founded on a suggestion by G. M. Palmer to R. D. Hubbard that a flour mill could serve the community instead of shipping the wheat out on the railroad.

Hubbard Mills n n n n n Hubbard originally started as a firm between three individuals who’s names were Hubbard, Palmer, and William Pearson. Hubbard had the financial resources, Palmer had the business knowledge, and Pearson contributed his milling and engineering skills. The originators first ideas were put together through dreams and hopes that Mankato could soon serve a purpose to its community. The original name of the company was Mankato Mill Company which gradually changed to R. D. Hubbard Milling Company in 1894 when the Mankato Mill Company sold its assets to Hubbard’s days came to a halt fast when he died on a business trip in 1905. Hubbard Milling was bought soon after by Palmer who was president of the First National Bank. Not long after buying the company, Palmer was appointed president of the company. The early years for Hubbard Milling were looking bright as new markets opened up and the economy was booming. Hubbard Milling soon became a cornerstone throughout the nation and overseas. Hubbard Milling is not only known for milling flour, but also for making other agricultural products.

The Thriving Industry n n n Through the help of George M. Palmer, Hubbard Milling became one of the most productive industries in the Midwest. Hubbard Milling was in operation through the tough times of both World Wars and even through the depression. In December 24, 1919, the history was changed for the thriving industry of Hubbard Mills. The purchase of all but 4 of 5000 shares of the company were bought by Palmer. Now that Palmer was in complete control, the company made a turn for the better by placing a wide variety of Hubbard products on the price lists, and extensive advertising and sales campaigns were carried out. The variety of products that were introduced was wheat cereals, pancake flour, dog food, and livestock feeds.

Milling of Flour n n n n n There are two basic techniques used in the grinding of wheat into flour. The two techniques are either done by stone or metal roller grinding. Some may think that Hubbard Milling made there debut by coming out with only the metal roller. That statement is false, Hubbard uses both of the rollers even to this day for the reasons of different kinds of the bread. For instance, if you want whole wheat, Hubbard will use the stone rollers. If you want white bread, the metal roller will be used. Hubbard uses quality wheat from the states of Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and parts of Canada. Much of the flour is shipped to the east coast for reasons of a better quality flour. The absolute best flour comes straight out of the Midwest and South Central Canada making Mankato the central location for the Milling of flour.

Milling of Flour n n Mankato’s mills today produce 7500 to 8000 sacks of white flour per day. They also produce 900 to 1200 sacks of whole wheat flour per day. This sum of sacks is up from 5500 per day that were produced in the middle 1980’s. The total production of flour is almost triple of what was produced in the early 1900’s.

Poultry and Livestock Feeds n n In 1928, Palmer came out with a great idea to create what he calls the “Sunrise Concentrate”. This act supported the superstructure of Hubbard Milling Co. in it’s Centennial Year. “Sunrise Concentrate” was originally formulated by Dr. John M. Evvard of Iowa State. Sunrise Concentrate is a type of feed that contains all the main ingredients of any other type of feed but with added vitamins and minerals to better your quality of Poultry and Livestock.

Poultry and Livestock Feeds n n n The Sunrise concentrate was the first of its kind made in 1928 and became one of the most vital components to Hubbard Mills. The demand for more of Palmers feeds came about again with the controversy of turkeys needing a high protein feed. Palmer then came through with a high protein feed that satisfied the turkey farmers needs. By having sunrise concentrate, costs were cut also. This was done by distributing the grain according to its formula to local elevators cutting costs of handling, freight charges, manufacture costs, and selling costs. In the end, you have a product that is profitable to both the farmer and the company.

History of the Hubbard Mill n n This is the original building was constructed in 1878. The building was originally 5 stories high and the 6 th level was added in 1906. In 1919, the white building behind it was added. In 1995, the silos behind the white building were built.

Sale to Cargill n n In 1984, Hubbard Mills was sold to Cargill Incorporated. The sale was favorable to both parties. Cargill will continue to grind the same product and serve the same customers but with a better form of management skills. Cargill employs approximately 200 employees in its mills and offices in Mankato today.

Outlook on the Future n Indeed I left out some information about the middle 1990’s. The reason for this is because there was not a lot of change. Flour milling has not changed that much throughout the years as one of the individuals from Cargill told me. Cargill is now the new name of what was called Hubbard Mills. Cargill, as I have researched, seems to be a company that is always on the rise as well as its profit margins. From what I believe, Hubbard mills is in good hands with Cargill.