The usual path
Manufacturer→Distributor→Retailer→Your barn
Buying direct
Manufacturer→Your barn
1. The markup you never see
Every stop on that first chain has to make money on the feed. None of those businesses are doing anything wrong — that’s how distribution works. But by the time a pallet reaches your barn, it’s carrying two rounds of margin that had nothing to do with growing or cubing the alfalfa.
Buy direct and you’re paying for the product and the delivery. That’s it.
2. Consistency you can actually count on
When you order through a retailer, you’re getting whatever they have. Sourcing can change between orders without anyone telling you, and horses notice before you do — feed changes are exactly the thing you don’t want happening quietly.
Buying from the manufacturer means the same operation makes your feed every time.
3. A real person to call
If something’s off with a load, the distribution chain turns that into a phone tree. The retailer calls the distributor, the distributor calls the manufacturer, and you wait.
Direct, you talk to the people who made it. Questions about a product, a delivery, or your order get answered by someone who can actually do something about it.
4. Freight and scheduling
Retail feed pricing has freight baked into it, usually more than once. Ordering direct in pallet quantities means one delivery, on a schedule that works for your feed room, instead of trucking loads yourself or paying for someone else’s logistics twice over.
What it doesn’t require
Buying direct doesn’t mean special equipment or a warehouse. Cubes come in super sacks or 50lb bags on standard pallets — the same way feed already shows up at most barns. If your crew stacks by hand, take the bags. If you’ve got a forklift, take the super sacks.
Ready to price it out?
Paramount Cubing has been manufacturing alfalfa cubes in Southern California for over 50 years, and we’ve always sold direct — to barns, boarding facilities, rescues, and private stables. Premium Alfalfa Cubes are 100% alfalfa. Preferred Protein Cubes are 50% alfalfa and 50% wheat straw. Two-pallet minimum, free delivery throughout Southern California.
