LOUISVILLE, Ohio — The bright, inviting smell of molasses and freshly milled corn greets the nose when approaching Star Mills, a full-service feed store and mill nestled by the railroad tracks in Louisville. Star Mills’ bright red brick facade is a testament to its success: the building has been standing since 1864.
At one time, the city was home to four feed mills — even one directly across the street from Star Mills. However, as times have changed, only Star Mills remains in business, having been fundamental to keeping the town on the map in its infancy 160 years ago.
“There’s a lot of history here,” Jason Leonard, owner of Star Mills, said. “If you had a penny for every piece of grain that went across the floor in this place, just think about how rich you’d be.”
When it first opened, Star Mills was a steam-powered linseed and flour mill. It eventually shifted to feed production. Many of the business’s current practices began in the late 1940s when Virgil Malmsberry took ownership after the mill had sat vacant for a decade. Leonard’s grandfather worked alongside Malmsberry and took ownership of the mill in the 1980s.
Leonard, a self-described “city boy”, recalls spending his childhood weekends working alongside his grandfather, a man with a great work ethic and respect for farmers, said Leonard. Those weekends spent around milling equipment and grains sparked a lifelong interest in supporting agriculture.
“From a young age, the farming industry as a whole fascinated me,” Leonard said. “What got me (into the business) was a love for farmers. Farmers are the greatest people, and they have a vast knowledge of everything.”
Leonard took ownership of the mill in 2010, fulfilling a career goal he had in mind since middle school. But his grandfather imparted a warning about the business: It wouldn’t keep running forever.
Changing times
“I’ll have people come in here and say, ‘I haven’t been here in 20 years, and it looks exactly the same’”, Leonard said. “That’s because it is the same.”
Star Mills is a snapshot of an almost bygone era of local feed mills. The mill produces about five tons of fresh feed daily, six days a week, using almost exclusively locally grown grains. Leonard said that about 70% of the mill’s business comes from creating custom feed mixes for customers. Still, he can remember a time when almost all of the mill’s business came from freshly made feed made in-house.
While the mill may have remained mostly unchanged over the past century, the times have not. Small local mills have had to weather a number of challenges throughout the years: growing interest in pelleted feeds, the rise of big box stores and lack of interest from the next generation in owning and operating a feed mill.
In part, these changes also reflect the loss of farmland and people who farm for a living.
“Farmers will say, once farm ground’s gone, it’s gone, and that’s the truth,” Leonard said. “I think that’s the reality of things, and down the road, there’s going to be less and less farms.”
Since 2002, Ohio has lost over 900,000 acres of farmland, representing a 6.4% decline over two decades. The number of farms across the state has also declined by 2.3% in the same period.
Leonard recalls that when he first began working at the mill, the surrounding area flourished with dairy farms, and the mill serviced between 35 and 40 dairies. Now, the mill only services three dairy farms, a striking picture of how dairy farming has changed in Stark County.
The loss of farmers and farmland also represents a distinct shift in the culture and lifestyle of the country. Leonard said that many of his customers are people who are passionate about agriculture but can’t farm for a living, opting for more stable full-time jobs during the week and spending the weekends raising animals or operating hobby farms.
Fast-paced lifestyles have become more common, pushing people towards the convenience of processed foods that are more accessible than putting together ingredients picked up at a farmer’s market or the butcher’s shop.
Significant changes like these directly impact small businesses, especially those catering to the agriculture industry. Leonard remarked that it’s hard to imagine small mills still being around in 30 years — but then again, he could be wrong.
“When COVID hit, people started wanting more local, more homegrown, and I think a lot of them have stayed with that,” he said. “You know, never say never.”
Growing the next generation
The future of Star Mills remains to be determined. Leonard’s children have different interests than running the mill, and he doesn’t expect anyone to come forward to continue running it after he retires.
What will continue, though, mill or no mill, is people’s love and interest in raising animals. While he doesn’t raise any animals himself, even after being exposed to the agriculture and livestock industry for 35 years, Leonard admires those who spend their time doing so.
“It’s a good thing for people to raise their own animals,” he said. “You see a lot of young kids that are very passionate about (raising animals). It’s something they know because they grew up with it. That’s what we need going later into life because if people aren’t raising animals, where are you going to get your food from?”
This time of year is one of the busiest for the mill, as 4-H season picks up and kids are working hard to get their projects ready for the fair. Leonard enjoys seeing kids come in to pick up their own feed who are excited to share news about their animals. As long as the next generation is still interested in agriculture, Leonard sees hope for the future.
Ultimately, there are many things that can’t be bought at big box stores that are plentiful at Star Mills: dedicated staff with decades of experience with feed, the opportunity to support local communities and farmers, the rich history of traditional milling and custom-made feeds. Even with all of its challenges, Leonard loves his career.
“I wouldn’t trade it for nothing. I really wouldn’t,” he said. “I’ve been very fortunate.”
