Kentland, Indiana
August 6, 2008
Changes in the seed industry and a
strong desire to deliver new seed genetics and technology
opportunities to east coast growers has prompted two seed
company veterans to leave their long-standing positions and
start a new regional seed company, East Coast Seed, LLC.
The new firm will provide growers in 27 counties across
Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia, and ancillary counties in
Pennsylvania and New Jersey with
AgVenture® brand corn,
soybeans and alfalfa seed products.
Jeff Middleton and Earl Passwaters have combined their skills
and more than five decades of seed industry experience to launch
the new company as co-owners. Middleton said, “Looking carefully
at this territory approaching three-quarters of a million corn
acres, we decided the time was right to bring growers a new set
of opportunities. Through the multiple-platform genetics and
technologies access that AgVenture provides, our customers will
have available to them the best and latest seed products on the
market. With AgVenture, East Coast Seed can bring those
qualities to growers in locally adapted hybrids and varieties
matched to perform in our customer’s farms and fields.”
Passwaters added, “We have structured our business and dedicated
our people to work with our customers on
their farms and within their farm operations. We’re passionate
about providing ongoing, solid, reliable service.
Starting East Coast Seed allows us to continue to provide
quality products and services to customers along with
new levels of resources that will enable them to increase their
profitability and the value of their operations.”
AgVenture, Inc. (AVI) Business Development Manager Chuck
Schneider said, “This is an exciting and
significant step, both for East Coast Seed and for AgVenture.
We’re pleased to expose growers in these states
to AgVenture’s unique business model and our ability to provide
outstanding seed products adapted to topperformance in local
soils.” Schneider added, “Building the AgVenture team with the
addition of East Coast
Seed expands our national network of independent regional seed
companies to now reach 23 states.”
East Coast Seed warehouse facilities are located in Salisbury,
MD and Bridgeville, DE. Team members and
staff are located on the Delmarva Peninsula, western and
southern Maryland, on the eastern shore of Virginia
and in southeast Pennsylvania. Business plans include expanding
their current sales and agronomic support
team in the near future. Growers who want information on the new
seed product offerings are encouraged to
contact Middleton or Passwaters for an introduction to AgVenture
seed and the Maximum Profit System™ the
company will offer.
Jeff Middleton and his wife, Jackie, have three boys, ages 17,
14 and 8 and they reside at Jeff’s hometown of
Salisbury, Maryland. Earl Passwaters and his wife of 36 years,
Beth, live at Bridgeville, Delaware where Earl
was raised and has been involved in his family farm. They have
two grown children and five active
granddaughters.
AgVenture, Inc. is the nation’s largest network of
independently owned regional seed companies. Based in Kentland,
Indiana, AgVenture provides this growing network of
independently owned and managed seed business owners with seed
products meeting exacting standards for quality, together with
leading-edge genetics and technology. Since 1983, this unique
marketing approach has allowed each individual company to match
the hybrids it sells to the specific needs of the geographical
area it serves. Combined with professional seed representation
at a local level, AgVenture strives to help every grower realize
more profit from every field. |
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