Valent U.S.A. announces expansion plans for North America

Date:12-08-2014

Valent U.S.A. Corporation announced recently a series of expansions to its commercial business aimed to support its growing specialty and row crop portfolio, as well as enhance service and technical support to customers across the agricultural regions of the United States.

The commercial expansions, planned to take shape over the next six months, will organize the sales and technical service teams of Valent into three commercial units – Western, Midwest and Coastal.  These new units will be overseen by a new management team consisting of commercial unit directors and field market development managers whose focus will be providing local, customer-centric farming solutions and technical support to the regions in each unit.

The new commercial unit leadership will be staffed by veteran Valent employees, with extensive experience and knowledge of the local areas.  The Western Commercial Unit will be led by Alan Kennedy as commercial unit director and Pat Clay as field development manager.  The Midwest Commercial Unit will be led by Matt Lawrence as commercial unit director and Dawn Refsell as field development manager.  The Coastal Commercial Unit will be led by Scott Todd as commercial unit director and Mike Riffle as field development manager.

“This is an exciting time for Valent.  We have an opportunity to provide our customers with a new wave of crop protection and production solutions that meet their local needs,” according to Matt Plitt, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Valent U.S.A. Corporation. “In order to realize our vision of playing a major role in food and fiber production, we are investing in the best talent and technology to support the North American agricultural market. This level of investment confirms the commitment of our parent company, Sumitomo Chemical, and Valent U.S.A. to the agricultural industry.”

In addition to expanding its commercial presence, Valent also announced plans to expand its research infrastructure to support the development of new pipeline technologies.  The expansion plans include investments in new greenhouses and growth chambers at Valent’s Midsouth Agricultural Research Center in Greenville, Mississippi, to support evaluation of new active ingredients and formulations in the Valent pipeline.  In addition, Valent will be investing in upgrades to its laboratory systems to support evaluation of new technology at the Valent Technical Center, located in Dublin, California.

“This infusion of resources into Valent U.S.A. will provide a platform for sustainable growth as we look to launch new technologies and integrate new businesses in the future,” said Plitt.  “I’m especially proud to say that Valent as a company continues to invest in the people, products and pipeline technologies that are critical to ensure we deliver the best, customer-centric farming solutions to the industry.”