Crop supply retail chain FS Partners and its owner, ag co-operative Growmark, plan to put up an expanded fertilizer centre in southwestern Ontario to supply both farmers and other retailers.
Growmark announced its plans Wednesday for a new 15,000-tonne capacity facility to be built at Ayr, Ont., about 20 km south of Kitchener.
The Illinois-based co-operative said the new site will have nine bins to provide “flexibility for retail blending needs” and a blending system able to mix up to 2,000 tonnes of fertilizers per day, up from 800 at Ayr’s existing FS site.
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Construction is expected to start next month and wrap up in about a year, Growmark said. The plant is expected to be able to bring in products by both truck and rail.
The new Ayr plant is expected to operate as a “shared asset,” at which FS would serve farmer customers and Growmark would distribute product to area retailers.
“Once construction is completed, it will give us increased capability to best serve our customers,” FS division manager Frank Barron said in the co-op’s release.
Growmark, which started operating as a group of local co-ops for Illinois Farm Bureau members, expanded to Ontario in 1994 when it bought United Co-operatives of Ontario, and set up FS Partners in 2005. — AGCanada.com Network
