J. R. Simplot to acquire Texas Liquid Fertilizer Co.

The J. R. Simplot Company has reached agreement to acquire the assets of Texas Liquid Fertilizer based in Hempstead, Texas.

The acquisition allows Simplot, a privately held food and agribusiness firm with headquarters in Boise, Idaho, to broaden its customer base and capabilities in the wholesale and retail fertilizer businesses as well as the industrial products marketplace. The acquisition also expands Simplots network of 80 farm service centers in the West and Midwest with six Texas Liquid Fertilizer (TLF) stores in southeastern Texas. Fifty-five TLF employees will transfer to Simplot.

"TLF is a strategic Gulf Coast liquid fertilizer import facility," said Garrett Lofto, Simplot AgriBusiness Group president. "We are delighted with this transaction and look forward to building on the dedication to customer satisfaction established by Texas Liquid Fertilizer."

Simplot has been a strategic partner with Texas Liquid since 2002, leasing significant fertilizer storage space and deep-water import capabilities at TLFs terminal in Point Comfort.

"We are already participating in the imported plant nutrient business at our Port of Portland terminal in Oregon and in California through Calamco at the Port of Stockton," said Lofto. "This transaction allows us to continue offering an expanded line of quality products to our customer base. The acquisition also complements our unique phosphate position, marketing, and distribution capabilities, as well as our connection to growers."

In addition to acquiring TLFs deep-water-port facilities and 110,000-ton liquid-storage-tank capacity, Simplot also has purchased the Texas firms blending operations at Hempstead, Holland, and Point Comfort, as well as retail distribution sites throughout the region. The blending facilities have an annual capacity of more than 80,000 tons of finished NPK products that are distributed within a 200-mile radius of Point Comfort.