A Brand Built by Quality

A Brand Built by Quality
Kentucky’s equine economic cluster has multibillion-dollar annual impact
By Kara Keeton

Kentucky is known as the horse capital of the world, it might be argued, because it is home to “the greatest two minutes in sports,” the Kentucky Derby. It might also be argued that Kentucky is on the map when it comes to horses because the Bluegrass is where champions such as Man O’ War and Secretariat were bred and born.

Being home to the Kentucky Derby and birthplace of famous four-legged athletes no doubt has laid the foundation for the state’s worldwide horse fame, but as the equine industry has grown in the commonwealth it is much more than the steeds in the field that have cemented Kentucky’s role as horse capital of the world.

It is a rich infrastructure of tops-in-their-field businesses supporting the horse farms and racing industry that makes Kentucky, specifically the Bluegrass region, known worldwide. Beyond the bragging rights, there are big bucks involved – multiple billions of dollars a year spilling into virtually every aspect of the state economy.

An equine cluster
The focal point of the equine industry may be the beautiful Thoroughbreds, Saddlebreds, Quarter Horses and many other equine breeds found in Kentucky’s fields and barns. Yet horses are only the beginning when looking at the total impact of the state’s equine industry.

“There is no question that the horse industry in the state spins off other businesses. You have equine feed, hay, tack shops, transportation, and that is just a few of the many businesses that support the industry,” said Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear.

Dr. Lori Garkovich, of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, has been studying the far-reaching impact of Kentucky’s equine industry. Her research shows that industry has developed into an equine economic cluster as it evolved.

“A cluster occurs when there is a geographic concentration of firms and institutions whose activities are interconnected and interdependent within a sector,” Garkovich explained. “That is what has happened in the equine industry in Kentucky, especially in Lexington and the surrounding area.”

Garkovich’s research justifies the existence of an equine economic cluster in the Bluegrass. It’s a concept many have long recognized as they watched the industry over the years.

“What we have seen over time is that as the number of horses and farms grew, so did the infrastructure in the industry to support the growth,” explained Nicole Pieratt, owner of Sallee Horse Vans Inc. based in Lexington. “At Sallee, we provide transportation for horses to tracks and farms across the country and into Canada, but Kentucky is the hub of our industry.”

The equine infrastructure
As the commonwealth’s unique equine infrastructure has grown, so has its recognition beyond the state’s borders. Today, Kentucky is home to equine world leaders ranging from specialty feeds and equipment suppliers to distinctive providers of veterinary, legal, financial, insurance and other services.

“We are very unique within the feed industry, as we are an ultra-premium manufacturer of horse feeds,” said Lee Hall, vice president of Hallway Feeds, based in Lexington. “We are making products that are fueling and feeding what is arguably the best Thoroughbred breeding stock in the world and very many of the best racing horses in the world. Would this be possible if we were located anywhere else in the world? I don’t think so.”

What makes the infrastructure around Kentucky’s equine industry unique and known worldwide, Hall went on to explain, is its quality. The horse owners demand quality products and care for their animals and farms, and businesses that provide the quality that is demanded have flourished.

Dr. Andy Clark, CEO of Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Lexington, echoed Hall’s statements. Horse owners want the highest quality care for their animals, he said, and equine veterinarians in the state have responded to their needs.

“There is nowhere else in the world where you can find the level of equine veterinary care you will find in Lexington and the surrounding area,” said Dr. Clark. “There are two equine MRI machines within seven miles of each other and dozens of digital X-ray machines, but this level of quality care should be here since we are the center of the horse business.”

That quality level has propelled some of those businesses that began by providing services locally to now reach far beyond Kentucky and the United States to the international equine industry.