Espoma opening processing facility in Pennsylvania to prill organic ingredients

Organic fertilizer manufacturer and marketer The Espoma Company is constructing a new processing facility that will have the ability to dry, blend and granulate organic ingredients into prilled fertilizer ideal for spreading across lawns and gardens.

The facility, in Hegins, Pennsylvania, is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

The company said that most organic fertilizers today are either not granulated at all or are granulated using pellet mills, which compress material into cylinder-shaped pellets and then crack them into smaller pieces. Pellet mills are commonly used in the making of feed and pet food.

Espoma said its new facility will be unique in that it will utilize a granulation system to make prills that are more ideal for the fertilizer industry, where sizing, uniformity, durability, dust control and the ability to apply using spreaders are more critical.

© The Espoma Company | espoma.com

“In our early years as a company, we were fully integrated. We could pulverize, dry, blend and package organic fertilizers that were fine powders. But when much of the agricultural industry left South Jersey, we became reliant on our suppliers to dry and eventually pelletize material, while our facility in Millville, New Jersey, focused on bulk blending and packaging," Espoma President Jeremy Brunner said in a statement. "After losing some key suppliers over the last few years, we decided to return to our roots and be in control of our own destiny. This new facility helps ensure a continuous supply of raw material, provides us with ample capacity for future growth and improves the physical quality of our product.”

Espoma said that there's an abundant amount of raw materials available close to the facility's location in central Pennsylvania. Espoma will take millions of pounds of these materials from local farms and divert them from land application, reducing potential nutrient runoff in nearby waterways. These products will then ship in bulk to Espoma’s Millville facility for further blending and packaging. Excess capacity will be available for commercial customers to buy in bulk truckloads or totes.

The Espoma Company is a fourth-generation family-owned business that has been the pioneer in organic fertilizer since 1929. For more information, visit espoma.com.

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