HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED

What HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED does

HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED operates the feed-milling division of the Heygate family group, a privately-held UK business with continuous family involvement since 1562 and a mill site at Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire dating to 1086. The company manufactures compound and blended animal feeds across virtually all major UK livestock categories: dairy, beef, sheep, pigs, calves, horses, poultry, game birds (pheasants and partridges), rabbits, goats and camelids, sold either as loose bulk (minimum 4 tonnes) direct to commercial farms or as 20kg bags through a UK distributor network. Production is anchored by up to 3,000 tonnes per week of animal-feed output and over 8,000 tonnes per week of wheat milling into flour, with downstream bakeries in Banbury and Manchester producing several million loaves weekly and 7,500 acres of owned farmland across Norfolk, Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire supplying milling wheat, oilseed rape, beans and vegetables. Differentiation rests on vertical integration with its own flour mills supplying fresh wheatfeed and wheatgerm, proprietary feed additives (Agricell live yeast and Avipro probiotic), and a nutritional advisory service staffed by qualified animal nutritionists that supports on-farm dairy costings, forage analysis and ration formulation. The business is UFAS audited across bulk and bagged feeds and FEMAS assured for its Agricell yeast, with commercial reach limited to the United Kingdom and no external equity, parent company or listed capital structure disclosed.

Name

HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED

Legal name

Heygates Limited

Website

https://heygatesfeeds.co.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Heygates Country Feeds is a family-owned UK animal feed and flour miller producing bulk and bagged livestock feeds across all major species, vertically integrated with its own flour mills, bakeries and 7,500 acres of farmland, serving commercial farmers via direct bulk sales and smallholders through a UK distributor network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animal Feed Manufacturing

NAICS

Other Animal Food Manufacturing (311119)

SIC

Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200), Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Livestock Complete Feed Milling & Blending (Cattle/Swine/Poultry) (AFADAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Bagged Retail Commodity Feeds (Small Pack Formats) (AFADAIAJ), All-Stock & General-Purpose Complete Feeds (Multi-Species) (AFADAIAB), Swine Medicated Feed (e.g., Antibiotics where permitted, Dewormers) (AFADABAJ)

Keywords

• Animal feed manufacturing
• Livestock nutrition
• Flour milling
• Poultry feed production
• Dairy cattle feed

Headquarters

HQ city

Bugbrooke, Northampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Bulk Feed Sales: Loose bulk feeds (minimum 4 tonnes) sold direct to commercial farms. Full range of compounds and blends for ruminants, pigs and poultry. Includes medicated feeds manufactured to veterinary prescription.
2. Bagged Feed Sales: 20kg bagged feeds for smallholders sold through network of local distributors. Products for horses, poultry, rabbits, goats, camelids and small livestock.
3. Feed Additive Products: Specialist feed additives including Agricell Yeast, Avipro, and supplements such as Butterboost for dairy herd performance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED is a UK-based, family-owned animal feed manufacturer producing compound feeds for livestock including dairy, beef, sheep, pigs, horses, poultry, game birds, rabbits, goats and camelids. Products are supplied both as loose bulk deliveries (minimum 4 tonnes) directly to commercial farms and as 20kg bags through a network of UK distributors and stockists. Manufacturing is vertically integrated with on-site flour milling operations supplying fresh wheatfeed and wheatgerm, with production of up to 3,000 tonnes of feed per week alongside specialist in-house feed additives (Agricell live yeast, Avipro probiotic) and proprietary programmes such as the Fresh Cow feeding concept.

Product overview

HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED is a family-owned animal feed manufacturer producing bulk and bagged livestock feeds. The company operates as the largest independent miller in the UK, offering a comprehensive portfolio of specialized feeds across multiple animal categories: Horse Feeds (including Horse & Pony Nuts, Traditional Blend, Equi Balancer, Meadow Blend, Challenger Mix, Conditioning Cubes/Mix, Stud Nuts/Mix/Balancer, Twilight Years Mix), Poultry Feeds (Country Layers, Specialist Layers, Baby Chick Crumbs, Growers Pellets, Duck & Goose, Turkey feeds, Quail feeds), Game Feeds (Superstarter Crumbs, Number One/Two/Three/Four/Five/Six Pellets, Partridge Grower/Breeder), Dairy Feeds (Butterboost, Classic/Forager/Specialist Ranges), Beef Feeds (Natural Beef Nuts, High Cereal, Finisher, Super Beef, Pedigree Bull Mix), Calf Feeds (Maxigrow, Calf Nutlets, Coarse Mixture, Rearing Nuts, Heifer Rearing Nuts, Multimix milk replacers), Sheep Feeds (Premium/Super/Flockmaster Ewe, Sheep Rolls, Lamb pellets, Hogget Nuts), Pig Feeds (Creepgrow, Finisher, Breeding Sow Nuts, Sow and Weaner Meal), Rabbit & Small Animal Feeds (Rabbit's Choice Pellets, Commercial Rabbit Pellets, Rabbit Mix, Country Herb Goat Mix, Llama & Alpaca Mix). The company also produces feed additives including Agricell Yeast and Avipro. Bulk feeds require minimum 4 tonne orders; bagged feeds are sold in 20kg bags through distributors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Agricell Yeast: Live yeast supplement for dairy and beef cattle that improves rumen function and can increase milk yield by up to 2 litres per cow/day or improve weight gain by up to 10% in beef cattle
• Avipro
• Rabbit's Choice Pellets
• Champion Beef Nuts
• Equi Balancer
• Stud Balancer
• Fresh Cow Pellets
• Butterboost

Products and services

• Bulk Feeds Loose bulk compound feeds, blends and meals for ruminants, pigs and poultry supplied direct to UK commercial farms with minimum order of four tonnes, blown into farm bins or feed stores. Includes medicated feeds manufactured to veterinary prescription.
• Bagged Feeds 20kg bagged feeds for horses, goats, rabbits, guinea pigs, camelids and small livestock, distributed via a UK network of local stockists identified through Heygates' online stockist locator.
• Agricell Yeast Live yeast feed additive specifically developed for dairy and beef cattle. Improves rumen function and feed efficiency, with milk yield improvements of up to 2 litres/cow/day in dairy and up to 10% higher weight gain in beef cattle. Produced to FEMAS assured standards.
• Avipro Natural feed additive derived from yeast that prevents pathogenic bacteria including Salmonella, E. coli and Clostridia from attaching to the gut wall of birds, passing them harmlessly through the gut and reducing scouring, wet litter and mortality.
• Fresh Cow Pellets and Fresh Cow Concept Feed for dairy cows immediately after calving with low protein level and key nutrients to benefit liver function, delivered as part of the Fresh Cow Concept — a proactive management programme covering the first three weeks post-calving.
• Maxigrow Calf Nuts 6mm nut designed to maximise calf growth rates, with optimum amino acid balance and natural yeast supplement. Research shows calves eat 22kg more in first 12 weeks, 11% increase in daily liveweight gain, and 6.7kg heavier at 12 weeks vs 3mm pellets.
• Champion Beef Nuts High-specification 16% protein ration for pedigree beef cattle with 5% oil and 12.5% fibre, including rumen bypass protein and live yeast for improved feed efficiency.
• Heygates Butterboost Dairy compound feed with high C16 fat levels formulated to improve butterfat levels in dairy herds.
• Classic, Forager and Specialist Dairy Ranges Three complementary ranges of dairy compounds: Classic for value-formulated compounds; Forager for balanced forage utilisation with high protein for maize or fermented whole crop silages; and Specialist for cereal-based rations supplying starch energy with RDP and bypass proteins and optional C16 fats.
• Horse Feed Range Comprehensive horse feed range covering Horse & Pony Nuts, Traditional Blend, Meadow Blend, Challenger, Conditioning Cubes and Mix, Equi Balancer (low-starch balancer for good doers and laminitis-prone horses), Stud Nuts, Stud Mix, Stud Balancer and Twilight Years mix for older horses. Leverages fresh wheatfeed from Heygates' on-site flour mills.
• Poultry Feed Range Complete range of poultry feeds including Country Layers and Specialist Layers pellets and meal, Baby Chick Crumbs, Poultry Growers Pellets, Duck & Goose Pellets, Turkey Starter Crumbs, Turkey Rearer Pellets and Turkey Growers Pellets. Medicated feeds containing coccidiostats supplied for chicks.
• Quail Feed Range Specialist quail feed range — Superstarter Crumbs (27% protein with fish meal and Avatec coccidiostat), Quail Grower Pellets (2mm micro pellets, 20% protein), and Quail Breeder/Layers Pellets (19.5% protein), available year-round.
• Game Bird Feed Range Sequential game bird feed range covering Superstarter Mini Crumbs through to Number Six Breeder Pellets, plus Partridge Grower and Partridge Breeder Pellets. Includes Avipro Plus and Avatec stages for chick mortality reduction, growth rate support, and shell/hatchability benefits in breeders.
• Sheep Feed Range Range of sheep feeds including Premium Ewe 20 Nuts, Super Ewe 18 Nuts, Flockmaster 18 Nuts, Sheep 18 Rolls, Ruminant Coarse Mix, Sheep Concentrate Pellets, Milkivit Lacto Lamb milk replacer, Rapid Lamb Pellets, Quick Grow Lamb Pellets, Hogget Nuts, Lamb Finisher Pellets and Ram & Lamb Coarse Mix. Includes ammonium chloride to prevent urinary calculi.
• Beef Feed Range Beef feed range covering Natural Beef Nuts, High Cereal Beef Nuts (with live yeast), Beef Finisher Nuts, Super Beef Nuts, and Pedigree Bull Coarse Mixture for high-genetic-potential cattle.
• Pig Feed Range Pig feed range covering Creepgrow Pellets for creep feeding, Country Finisher Pellets for grow/finish, Breeding Sow Nuts and Breeding Sow Rolls, and Sow and Weaner Meal for wet feeding systems.
• Calf Feed Range and Calf Milk Replacers Calf feeding range covering Multimix Original and Multimix Supreme skim-based milk replacers, Calf Nutlets (3mm pellets from 2-8 weeks), Calf Coarse Mixture, Calf Rearing Nuts from 8 weeks, Heifer Rearing Nuts with rumen bypass protein for dairy replacements, and the 6mm Maxigrow nut.
• Rabbit and Small Pet Feed Range Rabbit and small pet feed range covering Rabbit's Choice Pellets (17% protein, 16% fibre, registered brand with vitamin C), Commercial Rabbit Pellets (high-spec immunity-support pellet for commercial rabbit units) and Rabbit Mix (premium coarse mix).
• Country Herb Goat Mix Premium lightly molassed coarse mixture for adult goats with 16% protein, 7.5% fibre, rolled oats, steam-cooked flaked barley and maize, with natural herbs added for palatability.
• Llama and Alpaca Mix Premium molassed coarse mixture for llamas and alpacas with 16% protein and 9% fibre, including steam-cooked flaked barley and maize.
• On-Farm Nutritional Advisory and Ration Formulation Service Technical advisory service delivered by qualified animal nutritionists to commercial farm customers, including dairy costings, forage analysis, computerised ration formulation and on-farm visits with bulk-feed customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Agricell live yeast improves milk yield by up to 2 litres per cow per day in dairy cattle
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Allen & Page: Allen & Page is a UK horse feed manufacturer producing non-heating, low-starch and specialist equine diets. It competes head-on with Heygates' horse feed range across smallholder and riding-horse segments.
• Harbro: Harbro is a Scottish-based independent feed manufacturer producing compound feeds and blends for cattle, sheep and pigs. As another family-scale UK independent with a direct-to-farm model, it is a close comparable on positioning and scale.
• ForFarmers: ForFarmers (formerly BOCM PAULS) is the largest feed producer in the UK and Europe, manufacturing compound feeds for dairy, beef, sheep, pigs and poultry. It is the most direct head-to-head competitor to Heygates' bulk compound feed business in the UK commercial livestock segment.
• Dodson & Horrell: Dodson & Horrell is a UK specialist horse feed manufacturer offering a broad range of horse and pony feeds, balancers and stud feeds. Its product mix directly overlaps with Heygates' substantial horse feed portfolio including Equi Balancer and Stud lines.
• Carrs Billington: Carrs Billington is a UK manufacturer and distributor of compound animal feeds and a farm supplies retailer. Its bulk compound feed range across cattle, sheep and pigs directly competes with Heygates' commercial bulk offering to UK farms.
• Mole Valley Farmers: Mole Valley Farmers is a UK farmer-owned co-operative manufacturing compound feeds and supplying farm inputs. Its feed mill operations and direct-to-farm bulk delivery model overlap closely with Heygates' core commercial livestock channel.
• NWF Agriculture: NWF Agriculture is a UK manufacturer of compound animal feeds for dairy, beef and sheep, selling direct to commercial farms. Its product range, minimum-order bulk model and target customer base mirror Heygates' commercial livestock proposition.

Broad incumbents

• AB Agri: AB Agri (part of Associated British Foods) is a major UK agribusiness with feed manufacturing, animal nutrition and crop inputs. Its scale and ABF parentage make it a broad incumbent competitor across compound feeds, premixes and feed additives in which Heygates also operates.
• Cargill Animal Nutrition (UK): Cargill operates a global animal nutrition business with UK presence across compound feeds, premixes and feed additives. Its broad portfolio and global R&D compete with Heygates across multiple species categories.
• Spillers (Mars Horsecare UK): Spillers is a UK horse feed brand owned by Mars, offering conditioning, competition and stud feeds. As a brand-led competitor backed by a global consumer company, it competes directly with Heygates' equine feed portfolio at retail and smallholder channels.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/heygates-country-feeds-limited

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 HEYGATES COUNTRY FEEDS LIMITED