DLF to invest £3.5m in seed processing site

By Alistair November 7, 2021 09:36 Updated

Grass seed breeder DLF Seeds is to invest £3.5 million in new state-of-the-art mixing and distribution facilities at its main seed processing site in Worcestershire.

This comes on the back of a £3 million investment at its Scottish site at Broxburn, near Edinburgh in 2015, which automated and revolutionised the handling of forage grass and clover mixtures into the agricultural market.

“This investment will transform our current production facilities and bring much needed additional capacity and efficiency to cope with the future market demands in the amenity, consumer, environmental stewardship, cover crop and wildflower markets,” says Tim Kerridge, managing director for DLF Seeds.

“We have already seen increased demand for our products, especially for environmental stewardship, cover crops and wildflowers, in response to the UK government’s focus on habitat creation and carbon capture. In the amenity and consumer sector we have also experienced sustained growth and continue to see opportunities in these markets, as the economy recovers from Covid and embraces the sustainability agenda.”

The investment encompasses a new fully automated mixing plant for amenity and consumer products, whilst freeing up existing mixing capacity to triple the throughput of environmental stewardship, cover crops and wildflowers.

“This is a very exciting time for our industry where we must invest to ensure our customers can continue to receive the highest levels of service and the quickest delivery times for their orders,” Kerridge continued. “Covid and Brexit have presented many challenges over the past two years, but this investment will ensure we are well placed to serve our customers in the decades to come.”

Work is expected to be completed by spring 2023.

Earlier this year Headland Amenity, Rigby Taylor, Symbio and TurfKeeper.com announced the opening of a joint new turf science and technology centre in Essex.