Everris™ Americas Expands Manufacturing Capacity with Acquisition of Equipment from X-Calibur

DUBLIN, Ohio, May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

 Americas (an ICL Specialty Fertilizers company) has acquired the manufacturing equipment of X-Calibur Plant Health Company, located in Summerville, South Carolina. The purchase includes a fertilizer coating line and associated handling, processing and packaging equipment. The equipment provides Everris with additional manufacturing capabilities to more rapidly bring its new products to the market, including an innovative controlled-release fertilizer technology currently under development by Everris' Global R&D Center in the Netherlands.  

The equipment acquired by Everris will remain in a 42,000 sq. ft. facility located approximately 15 miles from Everris' controlled-release fertilizer production facilities located in Charleston, South Carolina, where it produces its Osmocote® controlled-release fertilizers and other coated products.  

The newly acquired equipment will enable Everris to introduce a new proprietary product that complements its Osmocote® and Poly-S® controlled release technologies early next year.  Everris' expanded product line of coated components and fertilizers will provide its customers in the ornamental horticulture, turf and specialty agriculture markets with an even broader range of solutions to meet their plant and crop nutritional needs.  All products will be available through Everris' distribution channels and sold by its Americas sales force.  Several of the new products will also be marketed by Everris' global sales network.

"Purchasing the X-Calibur equipment provides us with an ideal solution for our expansion needs," said Ariana Cohen, President of Everris Americas. "We require additional manufacturing capabilities to bring our new controlled-release fertilizer technology from concept to the marketplace. The equipment acquired meets our needs, and its proximity to our existing Charleston production facility will enable us to realize significant efficiencies as we ramp up production of both existing and new products. This acquisition truly sets us on an exciting path toward future growth."

"Everris is committed to developing enhanced-efficiency fertilizers that help growers to improve their productivity and profitability," said Fred Bosch, C.E.O. of Everris. "Acquiring X-Calibur's equipment is a major step in our more rapid introduction of new, innovative solutions to the global market, and it demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the ornamental horticulture, turf and specialty agriculture markets.  This transaction is a further step in ICL's strategy to become one of the world's major global Specialty Fertilizers players, and it complements several other acquisitions made by ICL in the Specialty Fertilizers sector over the past year."  

For more information about Everris Americas, or to find an Everris Territory Manager near you, please visit http://www.everris.us.com.

About Everris:

Everris (formerly known as Scotts Global Professional) is a business unit of ICL Specialty Fertilizers and a part of ICL, one of the world's leading fertilizer and specialty chemicals companies. Everris is the world's leading manufacturer of technically advanced nutrition products, specialty fertilizers and plant protection products serving the professional horticulture, turf and high value specialty agriculture markets. Everris Americas markets well known controlled release fertilizers such as Osmocote®, Agriform® and Agrocote® as well as the leading water soluble fertilizer brand Peters® and the recently introduced Agrolution® pHLow^[TM].

Inspired by nature's wonders, Everris strives to develop innovative solutions, which in their core, tune into nature's growth instinct and ultimately "encourage" grass, flowers and crops to grow greener, stronger and healthier.

Driven by this need to translate nature's secrets into cutting edge products, Everris uses its passion for nature to continually improve and provide growers with better yields as well as profits, while always caring for the environment. For more information visit, http://www.everris.com.

About ICL Specialty Fertilizers:

ICL Specialty Fertilizers, a business unit of ICL Fertilizers, produces and markets a broad line of proprietary high-quality controlled-release fertilizers (CRF), water-soluble fertilizers (WSF), foliar feed, plant protection products, water conservation agents, growing media and grass seeds, for specialty crop growers, commercial nurseries, greenhouses and professional turf throughout the world. ICL-SF is one of the world's leading producers of fully water-soluble monopotassium phosphate fertilizers (MKP).

About ICL:

ICL is one of the world's leading fertilizer and specialty chemicals companies. For a world challenged by population growth and scarce resources, ICL makes products that increase global food and water supplies and improve industrial materials and processes.

ICL produces approximately a third of the world's bromine and is the 6^th largest potash producer in the world. ICL is a leading supplier of fertilizers in Europe and a major player in specialty fertilizer market segments. One of the world's most integrated manufacturers and suppliers of phosphate products, ICL has become the world's leading provider of pure phosphoric acid and a major specialty phosphate player.

ICL is comprised of three core segments: ICL Fertilizers, ICL Industrial Products and ICL Performance Products. Its major production activities are located in Israel, Europe, the US, South America and China, and are supported by major global marketing and logistics networks. ICL benefits from exclusive concessions to extract minerals from Israel's Dead Sea, a vast source of high-quality and low-cost potash, bromine, magnesium chloride and sodium chloride.  ICL also mines phosphate rock from Israel's Negev Desert and potash and salt from its mines in Spain and the UK. For more information, visit http://www.icl-group.com.

For more information or a high-resolution image to accompany this release, please contact:

Ryan Lewis
[email protected]
+1-614-726-7108

SOURCE ICL - Israel Chemicals Ltd