CJB Industries: Customizes New, Unique and Numerous Formulations with Professional Technology and Rich Experience for the Agricultural Markets

″In 2022 we helped bring 26 new, unique formulations to market for our customers across the agricultural and industrial chemicals markets. Each contained unique packaging requirements, various raw material inputs, processing steps and formulating nuances. We were able to accomplish this because CJB Industries works hand-in-hand with its partners to ensure the product the end user receives is exactly what is desired – meaning the product meets the needed specifications and is delivered on time," said Sims Turner, Sales Manager, CJB Industries, Inc. in a recent interview with AgroPages.

Sims also introduced the overview of CJB Industries and its core strengths, examples of the innovative formulations development, new investment project, changes within the agriculture market landscape and how it’s addressing them, etc.

Sims Turner

Sales Manager, CJB Industries, Inc.

Who is CJB Industries? Outline its development history and team background.

Founded in 1997 by Clinton and Jeana Beeland, CJB Industries is a family-owned contract manufacturing company located in southern Georgia (USA). We are ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001 and 14001 certified.  

CJB Industries is a part of CJB Companies, which also includes CJB Applied Technologies and Salvus. The family of companies currently employs 190 people, including 11 engineers, four PhDs, and more than 16 chemists and biologists.

Could you introduce the capabilities of your company? Why should companies choose CJB Industries over other similar service providers?

CJB Industries prides itself in effectively producing numerous formulation types of herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, biocides, and plant growth regulators. We operate 10 suspension concentrate (SC) formulation units with another coming online in December ’23. CJB is proficient in SC formulating and can produce soluble liquid (SL), emulsifiable concentrate (EC), and suspoemulsion (SE) formulations equally well. We also provide chemical blending and packaging services and abide by the highest quality control standards.

What are the challenges of contract formulations and potential solutions? Could you share some specific cases of the innovation formulations development for different scenarios?

There are times when companies ask us to produce products that have only been made at a lab scale (1-L or less). Scaling up these products without running a larger pilot batch first is challenging and poses a risk to our customers, as well as us. In these situations, we highly recommend starting with our sister company’s (CJB Applied Technologies) pilot plant testing and production services to ensure the product is ready for commercial production. Pilot plant testing and production helps to de-risk scaled production and commercialization efforts.

Another challenge we can face is that certain formulations are more susceptible to microbial contamination. CJB Industries deploys a rigorous sanitization process at each of its facilities and offers product-specific microbial sanitization measures when needed. These efforts help mitigate the loss of product due to microbial contamination.   

Talk about your company's facility and features? What's the strategic significance of the recent investment of $4 million in a 6,500-square-foot addition at its Gil Harbin formulation plant in Valdosta, Ga.?

The $4 million project at our Gil Harbin facility gives CJB Industries the ability to increase production of bulk herbicides, plant growth regulators and industrial products, as well as packaged finished goods. We’re excited to bring this new capacity to our customers, especially considering our facility’s proximity to transportation corridors connected to key agricultural regions of the country and global shipping lanes. Since coming online in December ‘22, the new system has produced half a million gallons each month. Depending on the customer’s formulation process, it can produce between three million and six million gallons per year.

Who are your target markets and target customer segments?  What's the cooperation mode? Can you share some typical cooperation cases and what representative problems you have solved for the customers?

In 2022 we helped bring 26 new, unique formulations to market for our customers across the agricultural and industrial chemicals markets. Each contained unique packaging requirements, various raw material inputs, processing steps and formulating nuances. We were able to accomplish this because CJB Industries works hand-in-hand with its partners to ensure the product the end user receives is exactly what is desired – meaning the product meets the needed specifications and is delivered on time.

There is a large amount of effort that goes into delivering a high-quality product. Without effective communication with our customers and an ability to troubleshoot various manufacturing issues, some products would never see the light of day. Our experienced personnel are highly skilled at problem solving quickly as well as spotting potential issues before the manufacturing process begins.   

What’s your view on the market landscape of global contract chemical services industry? What are the drivers and challenges? What are the growth prospects of it?

Due to global population growth, increased regulation in the European Union, and a larger Asian presence utilizing U.S. manufacturers, the U.S. chemical contract manufacturing capacity could continue to be strained. In addition, society’s desire for more environmentally friendly ag products is changing the landscape. Investment in new production technologies will be required to meet this demand. CJB Industries is willing to invest to address these long-term market drivers and is well positioned to work with chemical and biological companies to meet their evolving needs.

If you'd like to share your company's story and products/solutions. Please contact Grace Yuan via: grace@agropages.com