DLF-Trifolium opens new plant in Scotland

DLF-Trifolium has opened a new, state-of-the-art, mixing and distribution centre just outside Edinburgh, Scotland.

At £3million, this is the largest investment in grass mixtures ever seen in the UK. The new 4,000m² site will produce all the forage grass mixtures the company sells, and has the capacity to supply up to half of the 11,000 tonnes of grass and clover seeds sown annually by farmers across the UK.

Bespoke automated equipment has been designed to select individual varieties from 48 raw material holding bins, then mix, pack, treat, label and palletise them in less than twelve minutes. As well as 500 standard, pre-planned mixtures, up to 3,000 ‘special mixes’ can be prepared to meet specific customer requirements. Approximately 13,500 consignments will be dispatched each year.

With the capacity to hold 5,000 tonnes of seed at any one time, the plant will run 24/7 during periods of peak demand in spring and late summer/autumn, when most grassland reseeding is carried out. Situated close to major road links north and south, orders dispatched by 5pm can be delivered the following day, via the national carrier network, onto farms from Thurso to Penzance.

Truels Damsgaard, CEO of the Danish-owned co-operative officially opened the new plant saying “The UK and Ireland is our second biggest market after Germany and it is growing. This is why DLF-TRIFOLIUM has invested in this new facility. Not many of our competitors are showing this level of commitment to the market.”

Tim Kerridge, Agricultural Sales Director for DLF-TRIFOLIUM in the UK agrees there is a strong outlook for grass. “We believe forage crops will play an increasing role within UK farming, as livestock farmers strive to produce more milk and meat from home-grown feed.

“They know that reseeding pastures with new, higher yielding, better quality varieties of grass and clover will boost grassland productivity and animal output, whilst reducing their input costs – so we see demand for grass seed rising.

“Our new mixing plant will allow us to cater to the very specific demands of all our customers – and do so more quickly and efficiently than has ever been possible by anyone before.”

Nearly half of all the grass seed sown in the UK has been bred or is marketed by DLF-TRIFOLIUM, and the company has more varieties on the Recommended Grass and Clover Lists than any other breeding company. These varieties are marketed under the Oliver Seeds, ForageMax and HF Seeds brands, along with customer own-brands, throughout the country. All these brands are now being produced in the new plant at Edinburgh.