ABOUT US
Watch your business take flight with Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition
Break free from average performance and service
Our purpose is simple: to deliver the WOW factor to our customers so they can succeed.
To keep farming in this often volatile environment, you need a partner committed to going above and beyond.
- Our unbeatable service across New England and New York helps farmers outperform their peers and their expectations.
- We offer no-nonsense competitive pricing that’s good for your bottom line.
- We regularly test our products to be sure they’re better than average so you can maximize revenue.
From the mill to the feed alley, we’re your partners. Because when you succeed, we succeed.
Going Against the Grain to Make Feed More Affordable
Our founders are livestock feed professionals who saw a need for more competitive feed options in the Northeast.
After decades of limited market competition, they shook up the game by providing a new, more affordable option that gave dairy and livestock producers new ways to succeed.
How we got here
2004
Three livestock feed specialists established Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition in New Haven, Vermont. It was the first time a new feed company had come to the region in decades.
2007
The business moved from a small flat storage facility to a rail-side facility, increasing capacity and productivity.
A feed pelleting mill was acquired in Brandon, VT, allowing for further expansion of Phoenix’s product line and available services .
2017
An Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) was established, granting company stock to employees and inspiring them to invest further in the company and customer success. Employees are encouraged to “think and act like owners.” Research shows ESOPS are more productive, faster growing, more profitable, and have less turnover.
A mill was acquired in Augusta, ME, providing dairy and livestock producers in Maine with a hyper-local option for mixed feed, pellets, commodities, and nutrition services. It also allows us to be more efficient in meeting the needs of farms across New England & New York.
Working together to feed people & preserve a way of life
“We’re here to deliver the best product at the best price so that our farmers and their animals can be successful in the dairy industry.”
– David Santos, Co-owner, President & General Manager, Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition
It takes a community to produce true workmanship. The old-fashioned elbow grease your grandparents always talked about. You can see the grit and dedication on their faces. Watch the video below to meet the hardworking community that makes up the agricultural industry in the Northeast.
Meet the team
Many of our employees grew up or worked on family farms. Whether in transportation, plant management, or animal nutrition, a career in agriculture requires the same dedication we see daily in farmers.
Leadership
David Santos
Co-owner, President, and General Manager
Born and raised in the heart of California’s San Joaquin Valley, David grew up on a dairy farm, spent his formative years as an active Future Farmer of America, studied dairy management and husbandry at the College of the Sequoias in Visalia, California, and devoted many years to developing his dairy herd, farm, and employee management skills in California, Hawaii, and Vermont.
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In 1996 he was asked to join Pine Creek Nutrition Service in Turlock, California, where he embarked on another facet of his career in agriculture as an independent dairy nutrition specialist.
Before becoming a founding partner at Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition, Inc. in 2004, David was a dairy nutrition specialist for Feed Commodities International in Vergennes, Vermont. As a former director and Vice President of the Vermont Feed Dealers and Manufacturers Association, David worked to give future farmers and agricultural education support and to give current farmers a more active voice on policy in state government.
Craig Newton
Co-owner
Being a native Vermonter and having grown up on a dairy farm, Craig knows a thing or two about Vermont dairy farming. After receiving a degree in ag-business from Vermont Technical College, Craig went on to work as a night shift pellet mill operator in Agway’s Middlebury, VT mill. After fourteen years of working hard behind the scenes in feed manufacturing, Craig began working directly with farmers.
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In 1986, Craig and his wife started Feed Commodities, just when the trend of TMR mixers and feeding commodities was gaining popularity. After Feed Commodities took off, Agway came back to Craig and urged him to sell them the company. After doing so, Craig found himself retired and bored. Along came Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition, a company started by two of Craig’s former employees to answer his prayers. Today, Craig has stepped back from the company’s day-to-day operations but still finds time to do what he likes best—wheeling, dealing, and working with dairy farmers.
Management & Operations
Shannon Kayhart
Chief Financial Officer
Shannon joined Phoenix Feeds in 2012 as a Staff Accountant. At the time there were only two other administrative employees. As the business has grown and expanded over the years, Shannon has led and built a team of highly skilled professionals that offer the best customers service, accurate and timely billing, inventory control, accounts payables specialists, and a human resource manager. As the Chief Financial Officer, Shannon is responsible for overall financial and administrative management and is an ambassador for the company.
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Shannon graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business management from Burlington’s Champlain College. Before her career started with Phoenix Feeds, Shannon worked for a family-owned environmental consulting company where was responsible for all AR and AP aspects of the business. Shannon grew up in Adddison County and has family members that own and operate successful dairy farms, so she is familiar with the lifestyle of family farms.
Shannon currently serves as the President of the Vermont Feed Dealers and Manufacturers Association whose mission is to work for the welfare of the dairy, poultry, and other livestock industries of Vermont. Shannon is a certified yoga instructor, loves hiking, running, traveling, and spending time with family and friends. Shannon now lives in Vergennes and has two grown children and two beautiful grandchildren.
Pete Decker
Chief Operating Officer
Growth and efficiency-focused, Pete knows how to lead companies to their next level of success. He leverages three decades of industry experience to improve production processes while maintaining exceptional quality. As the chief operating officer, Pete is responsible for overseeing operations and quality control.
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With a degree in business management, he began his professional career working at an Agway plant, where he unloaded train cars, ran pellet mills, and did whatever needed to be done. He was recognized for his leadership qualities and eye for operational efficiency and began managing feed mills in 1995. He built his senior leadership skills at Coca-Cola, IL Richer Feeds, Kent Nutrition (formerly Blue Seal), Land O’Lakes, and Reisdorff Brothers. He lives in Enosburg with his wife Dana in a historic 1870s farmhouse and has two daughters, Mady and Reagan.
Stuart Hall
Formulations and Nutrition Manager
Stuart has worked feeding dairy cattle since high school: from feeding the cows after school on his family’s farm to doing nutrition and formulating diets for customers, to now being Formulations and Nutrition Manager for Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition. Stuart graduated from the University of Vermont with a degree in Animal Science, was the owner/operator of a large dairy, and has worked in feed manufacturing for over 15 years.
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This background and knowledge has helped Stuart work with the many bagged and bulk feed ingredients currently inventoried at Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition. Stuart and his wife Robyn now live in Brandon, Vermont, have three grown children with families of their own, and are blessed to have three young grandsons.
Kevin Kouri
Director of Nutrition and Sales
Kevin brings decades of animal nutrition expertise to Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition and excels at improving producer operations and building strong nutritionist teams. He holds a B.S. from the University of Vermont and an M.S. from the University of Connecticut.
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Before joining Phoenix, Kevin gained experience in field nutrition sales, territory sales management, special projects, and sales/technical support at Poulin Grain, Performance Minded Ingredients (PMI) within Land O’Lakes, and Summit View Consulting, which he founded while living overseas to advise nutrition and farm management practices. His consulting business exposed him to the rapidly growing dairy industry in Asia.
Kevin currently serves on the Northeast Agribusiness and Feed Alliance Executive Board, representing industry needs throughout the Northeast with a focus on the engagement of state-level government officials to support agriculture in the region. Outside of work, Kevin is an avid downhill skier and enjoys road biking, fishing, and camping with his family throughout New England.
Victor Lavoie
Operations Manager
Victor, our operations manager, is a Vergennes Union High School graduate who grew up on a 60-cow dairy. He facilitates the transportation of feed to local and international farms and schedules truck maintenance both in-house and elsewhere.
With over 25 trucks to manage, he always remains on top of his game. Since he’s almost constantly managing people, it’s no wonder his dream vacation is a trip to Alaska, where he can hunt and fish wherever he pleases, away from the hustle and bustle of being a dispatcher. Victor joined the team in 2011 and has been an irreplaceable asset to the team ever since.
Nutrition
Michele Bennett
Dairy Nutrition Specialist
Michele always knew she would work with animals and has dedicated her career to animal care and nutrition. She received her bachelor’s degree in animal science and an associate degree in animal and medical technology from the University of Maine at Orono.
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Before joining Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition, Michele gained experience at PA Lessard Feeds, Blue Seal Feeds, and Gold Star Feeds. Michele enjoys working with dairy farmers to help them meet their goals. Michele also has a small farm with quarter horses, registered belted Galloways, and other small animals. She enjoys reining, ranch riding, camping, and hiking.
David Burnham
Dairy Nutrition Specialist
Having served the local dairy farming community since 2002, David has gained a reputation for invaluable commitment and commonsense problem-solving, with his dense knowledge of dairy nutrition and farming practices. While earning his B.S. in animal science at the University of Vermont, he capitalized on his study abroad experience at the Miner Institute in Chazy, NY, to work with the well-known Dr. Charlie Sniffen.
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During this time, David focused on becoming a dairy nutritionist, leading him to an internship in the field. David spent much of his teenage and college years working on dairy farms in many different capacities.
David is also well-versed in the industry’s newest nutrition technology, which allows him to provide some of the best nutritional advice on the market. These characteristics have provided him many successful and long-lasting business relationships with his clients. He continues to make time to further his nutrition and technology education every day. David and his wife reside in Beekmantown, NY, where they are proud parents of two.
Kevin Kouri
Director of Nutrition and Sales
Kevin brings decades of animal nutrition expertise to Phoenix Feeds & Nutrition and excels at improving producer operations and building strong nutritionist teams. He holds a B.S. from the University of Vermont and an M.S. from the University of Connecticut.
Read More
Before joining Phoenix, Kevin gained experience in field nutrition sales, territory sales management, special projects, and sales/technical support at Poulin Grain, Performance Minded Ingredients (PMI) within Land O’Lakes, and Summit View Consulting, which he founded while living overseas to advise nutrition and farm management practices. His consulting business exposed him to the rapidly growing dairy industry in Asia.
Kevin currently serves on the Northeast Agribusiness and Feed Alliance Executive Board, representing industry needs throughout the Northeast with a focus on the engagement of state-level government officials to support agriculture in the region. Outside of work, Kevin is an avid downhill skier and enjoys road biking, fishing, and camping with his family throughout New England.
Driven by our mission to be the best
We strive to:
- Be an honorable corporate citizen, obeying all governmental laws and regulations.
- Be the feed supplier of choice for all dairy producers and independent nutritionists within our marketing area.
- Be the preferred customer of all our vendors and suppliers.
- Provide a work environment for our employees that is safe, supportive, and satisfying for all.
- Protect the environment and the animals that we feed.
By accomplishing these five objectives, we will realize our ultimate goal to be the best in our industry. 🏅
Certifications & Memberships
