The J.R. Simplot Co. plans to build a regional, full-service agricultural service center in the Mesquite Lake Industrial Development District of Southern California’s Imperial Valley. The new center will support Simplot’s commitment to maintain and expand a significant presence in Southwest agricultural markets, according to Bill Whitacre, the company’s AgriBusiness Group president.
“This move is consistent with our strategy to concentrate on our core geographic strengths and provide focused logistical support to meet the needs of ag input dealers and growers,” Whitacre said.
The new center will replace an El Centro, Calif., warehouse terminal that Simplot has operated since the mid-1970s. “Because of the growth of non-agricultural uses around our El Centro facility, we have been working on a relocation plan for several years,” said Whitacre. “The new center will greatly expand the services we have been able to offer at El Centro. Our goal is to deliver the current and future needs of ag input dealers, growers, and feed nutrient customers well into the future.”
Simplot’s El Centro facility serves agricultural customers on more than 1 million acres in the Imperial, Welton, Coachella, Palo Verde, and Mexicalli valleys. The facility supports distribution of products manufactured at Simplot fertilizer plants in California, Idaho and Wyoming, as well as crop inputs that move through the company’s import terminals in California, Oregon and Texas.
The J.R. Simplot Co. is one of the country’s largest privately held food and agribusiness firms, with annual revenues of $3.4 billion and 10,000 employees in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia and China. Principal operations include food processing, fertilizer manufacturing and retail marketing, farm service centers, farming and ranching, and other businesses related to agriculture.