Mid-Continent Industries

What Mid-Continent Industries does

Mid-Continent Industries, Inc. (MCi) is a privately held, family-owned manufacturing firm founded in 1989 in Newton, Kansas, specializing in grain quality testing and cleaning equipment for commercial grain handling operations. The company's core product portfolio comprises three hardware lines: the MCi Kicker, a mechanical countertop grain dockage tester that delivers results in 30-45 seconds in line with GIPSA/FGIS guidelines; the MCi Auto Kicker, an automated grain testing system that processes samples every 45-150 seconds and analyzes ten parameters including dockage, broken kernels, protein, oil content, starch content, moisture, test weight, and temperature; and the Newton Grain Cleaner, a high-capacity gravity-screen cleaner available in stationary (Model 10) and portable configurations. MCi also offers custom metal fabrication services for specialized industrial parts, complementing its equipment line.

The business model is a direct sales approach targeting grain elevators, agricultural cooperatives, commodity traders, millers, ethanol producers, and export operations across the United States, with installations also in Canada, Europe, and South Africa. Notable enterprise customers include ADM, Cargill Ag Horizons, Louis Dreyfus, CHS, Growmark, Ag Processing, Ardent Mills, Columbia Grain, Consolidated Grain & Barge, Valero Renewables, Boortmalt, and Rahr Malting. Pricing is quote-based with lease and lease-to-buy programs that allow payments from operating budgets rather than capital budgets, lowering barriers for cost-sensitive operators. Marketing relies on the company website, Grain Journal trade publication presence, and YouTube product demonstrations rather than a formal reseller network. The company remains under family ownership following the death of founder Glenn Wells in 2001, with sons Steve and Darren managing operations alongside continued family involvement.

Name

Mid-Continent Industries

Legal name

Mid-Continent Industries, Inc.

Website

https://midcontinentindustries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Mid-Continent Industries is a family-owned Newton, Kansas manufacturer of grain quality testing (MCi Kicker, MCi Auto Kicker) and cleaning (Newton Grain Cleaner) equipment, plus custom metal fabrication, serving grain elevators, cooperatives, processors, and exporters across North America, Europe, and South Africa.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Equipment

NAICS

Food Product Machinery Manufacturing (333241), Instruments and Related Products Manufacturing for Measuring, Displaying, and Controlling Industrial Process Variables (334513)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550), Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)

akta.pro primary industry

Grain Quality Testing (Moisture, Protein, Oil, Test Weight) (AFAOAMAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Rapid On-Site Testing Services (Portable/NIR Screening) (AFAOAMAH), Sampling, Inspection & Cargo Survey Services (Inbound/Outbound, Hold Inspections) (AFAOAMAF), Weighing, Sampling & Grading Stations (Scale Houses) (AFAOAAAJ)

Keywords

• Grain testing equipment
• Grain cleaning equipment
• Dockage testers
• Agricultural processing equipment
• Gravity screen cleaners

Headquarters

HQ city

Newton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Equipment Sales: Sale of grain testing and cleaning equipment including MCi Kicker, MCi Auto Kicker, and Newton Grain Cleaner. Products sold as capital equipment to grain handling facilities.
2. Custom Metal Fabrication: Custom fabrication services for specialized metal manufacturing needs. Part fabrication and custom design work.
3. Equipment Leasing: Lease and lease-to-buy programs available for MCi Kicker and Newton Grain Cleaner. Minimal impact on working capital with no large down payments.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mid-Continent Industries designs, manufactures, and sells grain quality testing and cleaning equipment, including the MCi Kicker mechanical dockage tester, the MCi AutoKicker automated multi-parameter grain analyzer, and the Newton Grain Cleaner gravity screen cleaner (stationary and portable). The company complements its equipment line with custom metal fabrication services for specialized industrial needs.

Product overview

Mid-Continent Industries (MCi) offers a portfolio of grain quality testing and cleaning equipment. The core product line includes the MCi Kicker (mechanical countertop dockage tester for grain quality testing) and the automated version, MCi AutoKicker (for inbound/outbound grain sampling and automated grading). The Newton Grain Cleaner provides gravity-based grain cleaning in stationary and portable models. The company also offers custom metal fabrication services to complement the equipment line. Founded in 1989, the family-owned company serves grain elevators and handlers across the US and internationally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MCi AutoKicker Automated grain sampling and testing system for grain elevators and processing facilities. Processes samples every 45 to 150 seconds, analyzing dockage, broken, shrunken, protein, oil content, starch content, fuel content, moisture, test weight, and temperature. Designed for inbound or outbound truck and rail receiving, inline monitoring during vessel loading, and grain cleaner/sizer monitoring.
• MCi Kicker Mechanical grain dockage tester designed for countertop use at grain elevators and cooperatives. Provides fast (30-45 seconds), accurate, and consistent machine-separated results comparable to GIPSA/FGIS official standards, eliminating the need for hand picking.
• Newton Grain Cleaner Multi-purpose high capacity gravity screen cleaner with integrated aspiration and scalping systems, available in stationary (Model 10) and portable configurations. Cleans grains efficiently and can separate mixed grains using gravity flow without violent shaking or vibration, with continuous screen cleaning brushes.
• Custom Metal Fabrication Custom metal fabrication services for specialized industrial needs, including part fabrication to exact specifications, part reproduction and refurbishment, and bringing custom ideas to production.

Quantifiable outcome

• Process samples every 45 to 150 seconds depending on grain type and sample size
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• FOSS Analytical: FOSS is a leading global supplier of NIR and laboratory analytical instruments for grain, flour, and feed quality testing. Its Infratec and ProFoss lines directly compete with MCi's automated grain analysis, serving many of the same grain handlers and processors.
• PETKUS Technologie: PETKUS is a German manufacturer of grain cleaning, sorting, and seed conditioning equipment. Comparable to MCi's Newton Grain Cleaner on core product category and on serving grain handling/seed processing facilities.
• Westrup A/S: Westrup supplies gravity separators, seed cleaners, and optical sorters for grain and seed processors. Directly comparable to MCi's Newton Grain Cleaner on cleaning/sorting technology and grain elevator use cases.
• Perten Instruments (a PerkinElmer company): Perten makes grain quality testing instruments (Falling Number, near-infrared analyzers, glutomatic) used in grain elevators and mills worldwide. Directly comparable to MCi's Auto Kicker and Kicker product lines on functionality (dockage, protein, moisture, quality testing) and customer base.
• DICKEY-john: DICKEY-john manufactures moisture testers, NIR analyzers, and grain inspection equipment used at elevators and terminals. Closely comparable to MCi's Kicker/Auto Kicker on the moisture and test-weight measurement use case.
• Cimbria (AGCO Grain & Protein): Cimbria designs and manufactures grain cleaning, sorting, and seed processing equipment. Directly comparable to MCi's Newton Grain Cleaner line of gravity screen cleaners and serves overlapping grain elevator customers globally.

Broad incumbents

• Bühler Group: Bühler is a global industrial scale manufacturer of grain milling, cleaning, and optical sorting equipment (e.g., SORTEX, Vega). Comparable to MCi on grain cleaning and quality technology, but operates at much larger scale across a broader food/feed processing portfolio.
• AG Growth International (AGI): AGI supplies grain handling, storage, and conditioning equipment globally (e.g., grain augers, dryers, cleaners). Comparable to MCi on grain facility equipment and customer base, but operates at significantly larger scale across multiple product categories.
• Sukup Manufacturing Co. Sukup manufactures grain bins, dryers, handling, and aeration systems for on-farm and commercial grain facilities. Comparable to MCi on serving US grain elevator customers, though Sukup's portfolio is broader and focused on storage/drying rather than in-line grading.

Regional players

• Seedburo Equipment Company: Seedburo distributes grain inspection, grading, and moisture testing equipment and supplies to US elevator, milling, and seed industry customers. Comparable to MCi as a US-based provider serving grain quality testing use cases, though Seedburo is primarily a distributor rather than manufacturer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mid-continent-industries-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mid-Continent Industries