9th June 2010

Growth for Fertiliser Producer

by Sam Williams, Senior Business Writer, Eastern Daily Press

Fertiliser producer J&H Bunn has invested more than £100,000 in new equipment at a factory in Cornwall in a bid to build its presence in the South West.

The Great Yarmouth-based firm, which manufactures and supplies fertilisers to farmers across the country, has upgraded the factory in Falmouth which will begin producing Bunn products from July 1.

The move will see Bunn manufacture and distribute its own products to farmers in Devon and Cornwall for the first time in 15 years. While the company currently supplies customers in all other parts of England and Scotland, the two south western counties have been missed out since Bunn agreed an exclusive manufacturing deal with chemicals firm Yara in the 1990s, which saw the Oslo-based company produce and distribute its own fertilisers.

The arrangement with Yara has come to an end allowing Bunn to overhaul the facility to manufacture and distribute its own products to customers in Devon and Cornwall directly. Bunn has owned the site since acquiring a Cornish firm in the 1970s.

David Harrod, Bunn managing director, said: “We have been unable to service our national customer base in Devon and Cornwall for the last 15 years as we have been involved in an exclusive manufacturing arrangement with the Scandinavian chemical company Yara. “This agreement has come to an end so we are expanding at Falmouth following a £100,000 investment in a new plant and equipment.

“Our key customers are increasingly demanding national sales coverage and especially so in the South West, which enjoys a gentler climate and earlier seasons with specialist crops. “Our expanded plant at Falmouth will allow farmers and growers in the South West to access a much wider range of fertilisers whilst allowing Bunn to relieve pressure at our Sharpness factory in Gloucestershire which is running at full capacity.”

Bunn, which is among East Anglia’s biggest companies by turnover, achieved a 40pc increase in sales in the 2008/09 financial year to £175.9m. According to the company’s accounts for the year, the business employed 149. The Falmouth factory employs about 12 people.