Federal Premium: Doing More For The American Shooter

by
posted on October 27, 2021
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **

As American shooters experience supply shortages and inflated prices on ammunition, many are questioning exactly what manufacturers are doing to alleviate the problem. Jason Vanderbrink, president of Federal Premium Ammunition, took a few minutes to share some updates on the company's increased manufacturing capacity. Vanderbrink is also president of the Remington ammunition factory in Lonoke, Ark., and he provides an updated outlook in the video above on the facility's renewed capabilities since the acquisition by Vista Outdoor.

"It's important to point out that, since the surge started, we have made about 40 percent more in ammunition at Federal, CCI and Speer," Vanderbrink said. "That's a lot of ammunition that's come new into this market. When you add Remington into that, it's substantially more ammunition."

Additionally, Vanderbrink highlighted the growth in staffing at Vista's ammunition plants. Since the surge in demand began, the company has added about 1,500 new employees inside of 18 months. Some of the production highlights from Federal Premium include a 40-percent increase in handgun ammunition production, a 15-percent increase in shotshell production and "hundreds of millions" more primers for sale on the commercial market. All this increase happened in the midst of material shortages, a point Vanderbrink dovetailed into his answer to people asking whether or not Federal Premium can build new factories.

"As every other business in America and around the world is facing, we're facing supply chain shortages," Vanderbrink said. "We're no different. Brass, powder, resin. All of this affects our factories and all of this affects output. It wouldn't be financially feasible to built a new factory if you don't have enough raw materials to keep the four factories we have going today."

Vanderbrink also touched on government ammunition sales, as well as support for law enforcement and the Second Amendment. To listen to his full statement, watch the video above.

Latest

Taurus Expedition Rifleman Review 1
Taurus Expedition Rifleman Review 1

Rifleman Review: Taurus Expedition

Taurus entered the bolt-action rifle market with its Expedition, a Remington 700-pattern design that's built to be versatile and affordable.

New For 2025: Charter Arms Pathfinder II

Charter Arms updated one of the oldest models in its lineup with the new Pathfinder II, which features a lightweight 7075 aluminum frame, making it more well-balanced and easier to carry.

Review: Kimber 2K11

The 2011-style pistol was designed to address the capacity limitations of the single-stack M1911 platform, and Kimber's approach to the concept is its 2K11, a competition-ready offering with several notable features.

Favorite Firearms: A High-Flying Hi-Standard “A-D”

Manufactured in New Haven, Conn., in late 1940, this Hi-Standard pistol was shipped as a Model “A,” but a heavier Model “D” barrel was installed later to replace the original, light barrel, leading one American Rifleman reader to call it a Model “A-D.”

Ruger Helps Families In Need Through The Kids & Clays Foundation

In the effort to help tens of thousands of critically ill children and their families across the nation through local Ronald McDonald Houses, Ruger is among some of the industry’s foremost Platinum-level sponsors of The Kids & Clays Foundation.

Unlocking The Future: Smith & Wesson's "No Lock" Revolvers

The future is shaping up to be a good one for fans of Smith & Wesson revolvers. The iconic American company had released 14 new models thus far in 2025 at the time this was written mid-year. And, with one exception, they have all shared a common feature—no internal lock.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.