By ANN HINCH

Associate Editor

BLUFFTON, Ind. — A relatively new Pennsylvania company is ready to scale up from its pilot plant in Philadelphia to its first out-of-state commercial facility in Indiana’s Wells County next year.

EnviroKure, a producer of biologic amendments and organic fertilizers, announced last week plans to invest more than $10 million to build a manufacturing plant in Bluffton. The 80,000 square-foot plant will take in poultry manure from neighboring Jay County – which EnviroKure cites as the state’s largest egg-producing county – and extract nutrients and microbes from it, in a patented zero-waste system, from which to cultivate biofertilizers and biostimulants.

Sonia Nofziger Dasgupta, vice president of Commercial Strategy for EnviroKure, said biological amendments are not quite the same as fertilizer. Fertilizers are nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, among others; an amendment may or may not contain nutrients, but it does help a plant develop. This might be by affecting processes inside the plant, or in the soil itself to help the plant extract what it needs.

The company was founded in 2011, but it wasn’t until 2015 it began early commercialization of its patented products. The pilot facility served about 50,000 acres and has reaped more than $1 million in revenue this year, she said. But, the growing company has maxed out its first plant’s capability.

EnviroKure’s initial product launch served organic row crop and produce farmers, and Nofziger Dasgupta said its products have the capability to be used in conventional agriculture as well. The Indiana plant should be operational in late 2019, in time to sell its fertilizers and amendments for the 2020 planting season. Currently the company can sell in 42 states.

Right now, construction planning is underway and the company plans to add up to 17 “well-paying” jobs by 2020 with competitive salaries, benefits and stock options. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. reported it offered EnviroKure up to $165,000 in conditional incentives dependant on job creation and investment plans, and Bluffton offered additional incentives.

“As we were looking across the country, we looked at a couple of factors as well as where they all came together,” Nofziger Dasgupta said of choosing Bluffton.

The company sought a location that is close to customers, as well as seedstock (the manure) and a business-friendly climate. While EnviroKure also considered sites in Delaware and West Virginia, she said “no state comes close” to Indiana for the needs of an ag-tech business like theirs.

She listed the ease of licensing, permitting and networking in the Hoosier State, as well as the county and regional partnerships in the area chosen. She singled out the statewide AgriNovus initiative particularly as an “unparalleled” effort.

“I appreciate the strong support for food and agricultural innovation from Governor (Eric) Holcomb and the vision and leadership of AgriNovus Indiana to elevate the state’s agbioscience sector,” added Mark Lupke, president and CEO of EnviroKure.

The area around Bluffton is primarily agricultural, said Wells County Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Executive Director Erin Prible. Besides farms, there’s the Green Plains Bluffton ethanol plant, an AT Ferrell plant and ag retail and equipment dealerships.

“We’re not a huge town; our community is about 20,000, 25,000 people (in the county),” she said. “We’re just really excited to have them in our community,” and there is a need for more of those agricultural business partnerships.

She noted EnviroKure scouted the area a couple years ago as a candidate, and local leadership – especially Economic Development Director Chad Kline – has been working to secure the deal.

“In preparation for building their new facility here, we have supported their team in development meaningful relationships in northeastern Indiana and across the state with key business partners and industry leaders,” AgriNovus President and CEO Beth Bechdol said of EnviroKure.

Nofziger Dasgupta expects the positive relationships to continue. “We feel very fortunate and very supported as we move forward,” she explained.