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Jacoby Feed and Seed anchors a diversified and vertically integrated agricultural business in Melvin, Texas, near the geographic center of the state.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
Jason and Kelli Jacoby started the Feed and Seed with a grain warehouse in 1981, and over time they built their brand and added on. “We’re in the service business,” Jason says. “It doesn’t matter if you’re selling someone a burger, a deer blind, a sack of corn, fertilizer or whatever. It’s how they feel. It’s doing what you say, being there when you say you will, doing your best to get someone out of a jam.”
Photo by Jim Lincoln
At Jacoby’s Café in Melvin, Jason Jacoby, in cowboy hat, and feed store manager Mike Garcia, standing in cap, visit with longtime Melvin farmers and custom harvesters R.L. and Carolyn Hargroves.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
In 2014 the family opened Jacoby’s Restaurant and Mercantile in Austin, Texas, quickly gaining a following and extensive media attention.
Photo by Natalie Seeboth
Both the Austin restaurant and the Melvin café serve family recipes and seasonal specials highlighting beef and lamb from the Melvin ranch.
Photo by Natalie Seeboth
Weathered brick and other reclaimed materials from Melvin create an inviting country atmosphere at the Austin restaurant, just three miles from the Texas Capitol building.
Photo by Christine Forrest
Adam Jacoby, one of four Jacoby sons, grew up working in the family businesses in Melvin and now runs the Austin restaurant. “I’m happy that this is an extension of small-town Texas,” he says. “That ties in with Farm Credit and agriculture, because this wouldn’t be happening without agriculture. That’s the core of our story.”
Photo by Natalie Seeboth
Jason Jacoby and, from left, sons Holden, Dylan and Reece operate the Melvin businesses. Employees who have been with them for decades are also like family.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
Jason holds a handful of Showman’s Choice at the Jacoby Feed and Seed mill, well-known for its show feeds.
Photo by Christine Forrest
Feed, fuel, and farming, ranching and hunting supplies are sold at the feed store in Melvin, in the same building as the café. The store also inspired a chic retail area in the Austin restaurant.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
In 2011 the family built a rail spur and loading center in Brady, east of Melvin, where they ship out local crops and silica sand and bring in ingredients for the feed mill.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
In addition to managing the Jacoby Rail Center, Holden helps run the family’s cow-calf operation. “We finish our cattle ourselves, and custom-make our own rations,” he says.
Photo by Jim Lincoln
Jason Jacoby has been a Central Texas Farm Credit member since the earliest days of the family business. “We go way back,” he says. “Even the first properties that we bought back in the ’80s we financed through them. They’re local here, and they’re usually really competitive on their rates.”
Photo by Jim Lincoln