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Feeders, Packers and Industry Leaders

Loren Doll and the Growth of Irsik and Doll from 2,500 to 215,000 Head

A Kansas feeder who started in 1961 with his father and three Irsik brothers and led the company into seven feedyards.

Who Is Loren Doll?

Loren Doll is a western Kansas cattle feeder and past chief executive of Irsik and Doll, based in Cimarron. The Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame biography lists him as a 2015 inductee, and Beef magazine's report on the 2015 class describes him the same way.

The documented record on his personal life is limited, so this profile sticks to the company history the Hall and Beef magazine report and adds context about how feeding changed during his career. Beef magazine quotes him on the cost of building a yard, the price of fat cattle and the value of hiring people with strengths he lacked, and those remarks are the best window into how he saw the business.

Building Ingalls Feed Yard in 1961

In 1961 Doll and his father, Fred Doll, partnered with three Irsik brothers to build and operate Ingalls Feed Yard. Beef magazine says the Irsik and Doll partnership began that year. The yard started with a one-time capacity of 2,500 head.

That is small by today's standards, but it was the beginning of commercial feeding on the plains of western Kansas. Earl Brookover had founded Brookover Feed Yards near Garden City only a decade before, according to Kansapedia.

From 2,500 to 40,000 Head

The Hall bio says Ingalls grew from 2,500 head to 40,000. In 1968 Doll became managing partner and chief executive officer of Irsik and Doll, and he led the company's growth from that point.

Doll's own words in Beef magazine give a sense of how prices changed. Concrete, he said, cost about $8 a yard when they started, compared with $100 to $150 at the time of the interview. Fat steers were about 25 cents a pound then.

Irsik and Doll Today

The Hall says Irsik and Doll operates seven commercial cattle feedyards in western Kansas with a combined one-time feeding capacity of 215,000 head. Beef magazine adds that the company also runs grain elevators and other enterprises.

The magazine's photo caption names Doll's son Mike and wife Veleeta Doll among the family present at the induction, which fits the pattern of family partnership described across the company's history. The company began as a two-family partnership of the Dolls and the Irsiks, and the Hall bio and Beef magazine both frame its growth as a team effort over six decades.

The Key to Doll's Success

The record shows a long partnership model: two families in business together for decades, with Doll serving as the managing partner and executive. His one quoted lesson in Beef magazine concerns people.

The sources do not discuss financial or operational setbacks.

  • Partnered with three Irsik brothers and his father in 1961 to share capital, risk and work.
  • Took on the managing partner and CEO role in 1968, giving the company a clear leader.
  • Grew the original yard from 2,500 to 40,000 head before adding other yards.
  • Expanded to seven yards and added grain elevators and other enterprises.
  • Said that finding people smarter than you in certain areas is key, a lesson he credited for success.

Hall of Fame Recognition

Doll was inducted in 2015 alongside Robert Josserand of Hereford, Texas. The Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame launched in 2009 with Merck Animal Health, Osborn and Barr and Drovers as founding partners, according to a Drovers profile.

For more on Kansas cattle and the families who feed them, see farm.FM's ranching section or a farm.FM story about a Kansas feedyard.

Timeline

  1. 1951Earl Brookover founds Brookover Feed Yards near Garden City (regional context).
  2. 1961Doll, his father Fred Doll and three Irsik brothers build Ingalls Feed Yard with 2,500-head capacity.
  3. 1968Doll becomes managing partner and CEO of Irsik and Doll.
  4. 2009The Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame is launched.
  5. 2015Inducted into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame with Robert Josserand.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Loren Doll?

Loren Doll is a western Kansas cattle feeder and past CEO of Irsik and Doll in Cimarron. He helped build Ingalls Feed Yard in 1961 and was inducted into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame in 2015.

How big is Irsik and Doll?

According to the Hall of Fame bio, Irsik and Doll operates seven commercial feedyards in western Kansas with a combined one-time capacity of 215,000 head, plus grain elevators and other enterprises.

When did Irsik and Doll start?

Irsik and Doll began in 1961, when Loren Doll and his father Fred partnered with three Irsik brothers to build Ingalls Feed Yard, which opened with a 2,500-head capacity.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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