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More than 500 local producers will benefit from the addition of three one-million gallon tanks that will augment distribution of urea ammonium nitrate and Thio-Sul, thanks to these infrastructure upgrades implemented by Wilbur-Ellis Agribusiness.
CENTRAL FERRY–Wilbur-Ellis Agribusiness has invested $4.5 million to better serve its Pacific Northwest customers with three new million-gallon tanks, adding efficiency to area distribution facility and reducing the carbon foot print.
The Agri-chemical company increased the storage capacity from 500,000 gallons to more than 3.5 million gallons at its Central Ferry location to better serve area customers.
"This is a significant investment for Wilbur-Ellis and re-confirms our commitment to our grower customers in the Inland Empire and Palouse," said Wilbur-Ellis Agribusiness Vice-President of Sales and Marketing Ryan Klaveano.
The upgrade includes building three new million-gallon tanks for the storage of urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) and Thio-Sul, important liquid fertilizer solutions, and high-quality nitrogen and sulfur products, for the more than 500 growers Wilbur-Ellis serves in the region.
Increasing the facility's capacity means greater availability of UAN and Thio-Sul, liquid nitrogen and sulfur sources that are safe to handle and easy to apply, with proven yield-improving results, augmented nutritional product selection, expanded rail access for improved service speed, and shortened time frames from port delivery to growers' fields.
"Our team will be able to get more yield-boosting products in customers' hands, faster and more efficiently," said Tim Watts, Wilbur-Ellis Agribusiness district sales manager in the Pacific Northwest region.
The UAN and Thio-Sul products are flexible and versatile for mixing, and the upgraded facility now has the ability to blend UAN and Thio-Sul with essential micronutrients and other products, bringing customers the latest nutrition technology to improve yields and plant quality. This means Wilbur-Ellis no longer needs to ship product back and forth from the facility to its retail locations for fertilizer blending. Fewer trucks on the road contributes to reducing Wilbur-Ellis' carbon footprint and reduces road congestion in the busy spring and fall fertilizer application seasons.
"The newly created operational efficiencies will benefit growers in the Inland Empire and on the Palouse who grow more than 2 million acres of wheat, peas, lentils, garbanzo beans and other crops within a 100-mile radius of the facility," said Watts. "It will help us provide growers with opportunities for increased production and improved profitability."
The Central Ferry terminal, located on the Snake River in the southeast part of Washington state, provides fertilizer products to the 10 Wilbur-Ellis retail locations in the Inland Empire and Palouse, covering eastern Washington, north Idaho and northeast Oregon.
