History
How it all began
The journey began on the Great Plains of Colorado
Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, LLC, credits the most complete beef operation in the nation – Monfort of Colorado, Inc. After returning from WWI in the late 1920’s, Warren H. Monfort began farming north of Greeley, Colo. In 1930, during the Great Depression, Mr. Monfort became a pioneer in quality cattle feeding and was among the first in the industry to begin providing quality fed cattle to packing plants on a year-round basis. The Monfort feedyard grew rapidly, reaching a capacity of 3,500 head during WWII, an enormous number for that period. In 1966, the method of processing flaked corn was pioneered at the Monfort feedyard. By 1968, the operation had burgeoned into the world’s first 100,000-head feedyard. The phrase “We don’t just feed cattle … We feed the world” began.
Planting the seeds of growth
Continental Grain Company.
In 1813, Simon Fribourg founded a small grain-trading firm in Arlon, France (now Belgium). When Belgium was struck by famine in 1848, Simon Fribourg’s son, Michel, made the perilous trip to Bessarabia (now Romania), carrying sacks of gold to buy grain to ship back home. With trade expanding in Europe, Arthur Fribourg established operations in Antwerp. Partnering with his father and brother, he built flour mills in Belgium and Luxembourg. In 1921, opportunity arose in the United States with the Midwest’s emergence as a global grain powerhouse. Jules Fribourg opened Continental Grain Company with a seat on the Chicago Board of Trade and an office in New York City. In 1945, led by Michel Fribourg and headquartered in New York City, Continental Grain emerged as one of the largest private grain companies whose processing, storage and transport networks extended from farmers to consumers around the world. In 1975, Continental Grain Company purchased Coronado Feeders, and, by 2000, a new beginning in the cattle industry emerged, ContiBeef LLC.
From the past to the present, Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, LLC, takes pride in its heritage and is proud to be associated with the grain and cattle feeding industries’ pioneers.