Oct 23, 2020

Verisem acquires vegetable seed processing facility in Washington state

Verisem North America, a subsidiary of Verisem BV, the collection of leading global seed production operations and a portfolio company of Paine Schwartz Partners, announced Oct. 21 that it has acquired a new vegetable seed processing facility in Warden, Washington.

The approximately 134,851-square-foot state-of-the-art, turnkey facility, which includes 14 buildings and a rail spur over 11.6 acres, immediately enhances Verisem’s seed processing capabilities and increases production capacity.

Brotherton Seed Co.  (“Brotherton”), the Moses Lake, Washington subsidiary of Verisem North America, has already begun operating out of the facility, which will serve as its new primary base of operations. The facility utilizes cutting-edge seed cleaning technology and provides increased seed-handling capacity that will enable Brotherton to continue meeting global market demand growth.

“We are excited to advance our global strategy and enhance our processing capabilities in the Northwest with this new facility and to continue providing customers with the highest quality seeds that they expect from Verisem,” said Ibrahim El Menschawi, Global Chief Executive Officer of Verisem. “This state-of-the-art facility provides us even more capacity and expanded service capabilities through new technology to create local jobs, better serve customers and grow our business in North America and beyond.”

“Expanding our operations into this state-of-the-art seed facility marks the next chapter in the 80-plus years of growth that Brotherton has enjoyed,” said Scott Marks, Brotherton’s General Manager. “The increased capacity of our new facility will allow us to meet the growing domestic and international demand for the highest quality pea, bean and edamame seeds that our customers expect from Brotherton.”

Verisem is a leading global producer, packer and distributor of specialty vegetable seeds for the professional, semiprofessional and hobby garden markets around the world, and a contract supplier to a diverse set of global seed companies.

The company maintains production expertise across an expansive variety of more than 90 different seed types and more than 2,000 different varieties including beans, cabbage, carrots, chicory, coriander, onions, peas and radishes.

Verisem today has operations in the Netherlands, France, Italy and the United States and offers production services for customers located in more than 90 countries worldwide.