Australian Crop Protection Company Nufarm to Close Three Plants, Expand Others

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources Australia (Perth, Australia)--Australian crop protection company Nufarm (North Laverton, Victoria) says it will close two Australian plants another in New Zealand. The loss of capacity from the closure will be offset by an expansion of the company's facilities in Victoria.

The plants set to close are located in Welshpool, Western Australia; Lytton, Queensland; and Otahuhu, New Zealand.

The company pointed out that although it is closing plants in Australia, it is not moving jobs offshore. As a result of its acquisition growth model, Nufarm has been operating plants of similar size and similar output throughout the country, resulting in higher operating costs.

"This is about improving the business and more effectively meeting the needs of our customers with an efficient and cost-effective structure," said Managing Director Doug Rathbone.

Starting in 2015, manufacturing equipment from the three closing facilities will be dismantled and transported to other facilities in North Laverton. Expansion of the other facilities will be required to house the new equipment, and the number of staff will be increased.

More than 100 staff will lose their jobs at the Australian plants, with another 50 to go in New Zealand. However, the transport and logistics arm of the company is set to expand, as the move to centralized manufacturing will require a more extensive warehouse and logistics network.

Last year, Nufarm's Australian sales figures dropped 14% to US$560 million (AU$604 million) following two warmer-than-normal dry seasons, when drought affected much of the Australian agricultural industry.

A growth model of acquisition has allowed Nufarm to grow rapidly since 2000. Now the ninth-largest crop protection company in the world, the company has operations in Australasia, North and South America, the Middle East and Europe.

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