BATON ROUGE — Louisiana economic development officials announced that Idaho-based 1,4GROUP, maker of agricultural chemicals, is considering Ascension Parish as a potential site for a $35 million processing facility. The proposed plant would manufacture an insect repellent and a preservative for potatoes in storage.
Officials says the project would create 34 new direct jobs with an average annual salary of $68,619 plus benefits. They estimate it also would result in 126 new indirect jobs, for a total of 160 new jobs for Ascension Parish and the capital region.
“1,4GROUP has found success in producing and marketing its specialty products to agricultural markets in the U.S. and abroad,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards in a press release. “As the company looks to further expand, Louisiana and Ascension Parish offer much to continue its successful operations. We look forward to the company’s final investment decision and stand ready with a skilled workforce and an attractive business climate.”
Founded in 1992, the food preservation company has expanded across North America and Europe. The Louisiana project would bring production activity to the U.S. that has been taking place in China.
“We are interested in Louisiana because it offers a readily available supply of raw materials, a highly skilled workforce and multiple seaports,” said the company’s chairman, John Forsythe. “Our passion is to help feed the earth’s growing population well into the future with the use of naturally occurring biochemicals. Nearly a third of the food grown today is lost between the field and the plate. One of our products significantly reduces the loss of potatoes in storage, and the other is a high-performing insect repellent from plant oils. This state-of-the-art production facility would provide these biochemical solutions globally.”
