A rendering shows what designers envision the completed Italpollina building will look like along Scatterfield Road in Anderson. The company says Anderson's location is ideal because many of its customers are in the Midwest. Image provided by Italpollina
ANDERSON – Even before Italpollina starts production at its U.S. headquarters in Anderson, the Italian company is planning additional investments in the city.
Italpollina CEO Luca Bonini told the Anderson Redevelopment Commission on Tuesday that the firm is investing more than $6 million in Anderson with plans to expand to a second production facility and a next-generation greenhouse.
The company is constructing the 70,000-square-foot facility at an estimated cost of $4.5 million and Italpollina planned an initial investment of $4.7 million in equipment.
“The plant is 99 percent ready and we hope to start production by the end of the year,” Bonini said. “All the equipment is tailor-made bio-tech machinery and technology.
“We’re investing $6 million, which is more than we expected,” he said. “This is a unique plant in the world. Our plant in Italy is not as sophisticated as the Anderson facility.”
When production starts, Bonini said, the company plans to run two or three shifts around the clock to maximize output.
Italpollina’s second phase will be another 70,000-square-foot building to the north of the existing facility and west of Purdue Polytechnic Institute.
“Anderson will be the research and development center,” Bonini said. “We are considering an investment in northern Indiana. All three investments are important to us. We’re not changing our commitment to Anderson.”
Greg Winkler, executive director of the Anderson Economic Development Department, said there is an option agreement with Scatterfield LLC to purchase the additional property from the Anderson Redevelopment Commission.
Bonini said Italpollina is applying for new market tax credits for the second Anderson facility.
Winkler said construction has to start by the end of March to qualify for the tax credits.
Italpollina intends to hire 35 employees by the end of 2019.
Italpollina is a world leader in the production of organic fertilizers, biostimulants of vegetal origin and beneficial microorganisms.
Bonini said Italpollina introduced its product in the United States several years ago and wanted to establish a factory in the U.S.
The Anderson Redevelopment Commission had previously approved an option with Italpollina for the possible purchase of an additional 10 acres.
The commission would sell the land to the developers for $1,000 per acre.
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