Fertilizer company Agrico Canada, through its joint venture Northumberland Grain in southern Ontario, has bought a neighbouring ag retailer with plans to consolidate three outlets down to two.
The company, 50 per cent co-owned by Agrico with Dexter and Karen Harder, has bought Hunco Farm Supply, an ag input, feed and farm supply dealer at Port Hope, for an undisclosed sum.
Northumberland runs a grain elevator and crop input business at Brighton, east of Port Hope on Lake Ontario, as well as a branch ag input dealership, formerly 100 per cent owned by Agrico, at nearby Cobourg.
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Northumberland will close down the Cobourg site, which Agrico opened in 1967, next summer and Agrico will move its liquid nitrogen terminal from there to the Hunco property at Port Hope.
Agrico president Bob Whitelaw said in a news release that a “major component” of the company’s liquid nitrogen comes from Cameco at Port Hope, so this arrangement will move the terminal closer to the source.
Hunco will merge into Northumberland under the Northumberland name, Dexter Harder said in the release.
Northumberland has operated in the area since 1980 and became a joint venture with Agrico in 1996.
