AgroLiquid celebrates 40th anniversary

More than 350 AgroLiquid employees and retail partners from across the U.S., Canada and Mexico gathered at AgroLiquid headquarters in St. Johns, Michigan, on Aug. 17 to mark the company’s 40th anniversary, according to a news release. Troy Bancroft, owner and co-founder, reflected on the needs he and his father-in-law, Douglas Cook, set out to address when they started the company, along with the strides AgroLiquid has made in researching and developing new crop nutrition products that maximize outputs while protecting plants.

AgroLiquid owner and co-founder Troy Bancroft addresses the audience during a companywide celebration in St. Johns, Michigan. (Courtesy AgroLiquid)
AgroLiquid owner and co-founder Troy Bancroft addresses the audience during a companywide celebration in St. Johns, Michigan. (Courtesy AgroLiquid)

“Farmers needed something different,” Bancroft said during the event. “They were looking for foliars, transplant solutions and fertigation options. There was an opportunity to address those needs by providing a true solution chemically and agronomically. We could change the industry. We could ‘prosper the farmer.’”

Bancroft and Cook co-founded the company in April 1983. Since then, the company has grown to include five manufacturing plants and a 1,400-acre research farm. AgroLiquid has also built a national team of agronomy experts and a network of more than 200 independent retail partners and hundreds of highly trained sales representatives.

“From Day 1, our goal has stayed consistent: providing farmers with what they need,” said Nick Bancroft, who took over as president and CEO from father Troy in 2020. “Looking forward to the next 40 years, the goal is the same, but the process has changed.”

The company, which manufactures and distributes precision crop nutrition products throughout North America, remains family owned, with Troy Bancroft’s three sons guiding the business. In addition to Nick serving as president and CEO, Albert is the company’s workplace development lead and Gerrit is operations director. 

For more information, visit: agroliquid.com.


Fox Packaging names Doxey director of sales

Fox Packaging recently announced that Jen Doxey has joined the company as director of sales, according to a news release. Doxey brings over 20 years of experience in the produce industry, with an emphasis on developing and executing strategic sales plans, building long-term customer relationships and leading high-performing teams. 

“I am extremely thankful for the opportunity of joining Fox Packaging and look forward to working and learning from everyone,” said Doxey. “Fox has a reputation of providing high quality packaging solutions and I am grateful to be aligned with an organization that is not only customer-centric, but also values their employees. I look forward to contributing to the growth and success of the individuals I will work with and the organization as a whole as I aim to identify new opportunities for our packaging and packing equipment.”

Doxey joins Fox Packaging from Giro Pack, where she served as the national sales manager for nearly eight years. Prior to that, she held various sales leadership roles at Sorma USA, Sinclair Systems International and Aweta Americas. She holds a degree in business management from Walden University.

“We are pleased to welcome Jen to our Fox family,” said Keith Fox, president of Fox Packaging. “She is a proven leader with a wealth of industry knowledge and expertise. She shares our vision of delivering high-quality products and services that meet the needs of our customers. We look forward to working with her to grow our business and support our team.”

For more information, visit: foxbag.com.


Sitofex designed to help increase fruit and nut yields

Growers now have a new, yield-enhancing plant growth regulator available for the 2024 season. Sitofex is a water-based, micro-emulsion formulation of forchlorfenuron available in a new tip-and-pour bottle, according to a news release.

Sitofex is a unique plant growth regulator that is a synthetic cytokinin. It works by elongating and strengthening cells in berries, fruit and nut crops. The formulation offers excellent crop safety across a wide range of labeled crops including blueberries, bush berries, grapes (table, wine, raisins), kiwifruit, cherries, figs, pears, plums/prunes, pistachios and almonds. The California label is currently more restrictive regarding the crops labeled, but research is being conducted to allow expanded use in the future.

The new one-quart container is desinged to precisely measure the product for application. Proper timing and precise rates of application are essential for achieving the best results. Sitofex will be available soon for use for the upcoming season.

Sitofex is the latest product introduction from German manufacturer Alzchem, whose Dormex product helps growers overcome shortfalls in chill accumulation by encouraging bud break. 

For more information, visit: alzchem.com/en.


Semios awarded for irrigation technology

Semios Technologies Inc. has been selected as the winner of the “Overall Smart Irrigation Company of the Year” award in the fourth annual AgTech Breakthrough Awards program conducted by AgTech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization that recognizes the top companies, technologies and products in the global agricultural and food technology markets, according to a news release.

“Being able to draw from a diverse data set of climatic, plant health, water status and irrigation data means you get a fulsome view of how they all factor into the variability in water demand and its impact on crop yield and quality. We’re thankful to AgTech Breakthrough for understanding the breakthrough that this is,” said Chris Loge, chief product officer for Semios. “Our products come from working with our growers to understand their use cases and put them into action. With several exciting products in development and research underway, we’re excited to see where these tools go over the next few months.”

This year’s AgTech Breakthrough program attracted more than 1,750 nominations from over 15 different countries throughout the world. The all-in-one crop management platform from Semios provides tools for growers to plan, execute and monitor weekly irrigation schedules in one dashboard, with all the key measurements needed for optimal water management.

For more information, visit: semios.com.