AgroLiquid, St. Johns, Mich., broke ground on its first Southeastern production facility on March 19 at the North Florida Mega Industrial Park (NFMIP) in Lake City, Fla. The facility is expected to be fully operational by early 2025.
The new 48,355-square-foot facility, situated on nearly 20 acres, is the first facility for the 20-year-old industrial park. By establishing a local manufacturing presence, AgroLiquid said it aims to streamline operations, reduce transportation time and cost, and minimize environmental impacts associated with current long-distance product hauling.
AgroLiquid paid Weyerhauser Co., which developed the industrial park, $1.3 million for the 20-acre site in February, according to the Lake City Reporter, which reported that initial plans are for the plant to employ 10-15 people. AgroLiquid currently has manufacturing and distribution sites in Michigan, Montana, North Dakota, Iowa, and California.
According to the site plans submitted to the county for approval, the facility will feature four tanks for mixing the fertilizers to be packaged and distributed. One tank will hold 2 million gallons, while the others are set to hold 500,000 gallons. According to the company’s website, it sells nitrogen fertilizers, phosphorous fertilizers, potassium fertilizers, biofertilizers, and products that focus on micronutrients and secondary nutrients.
Founded in 1983 by father and son-in-law team Douglas Cook and Troy Bancroft, AgroLiquid remains a family business both in its ownership and direction with Troy Bancroft’s three sons, Nick (CEO), Albert (Workplace Development Lead), and Gerrit (Operations Director). The company said its sales account managers support a network of more than 200 independent retail partners and hundreds of sales representatives.