Equipment being moved in and installed at International Mulch earlier this year.

The incoming Live Oak business operating under the code name “Project Mulch” has been identified as International Mulch, a St. Louis, Mo. based company dealing in recycled rubber products. The company recycles rubber tires and other rubber materials, chops them up, paints the chips, and sells the resulting mulch to retailers for landscaping, playgrounds, and other uses. International Mulch has other production and manufacturing facilities in Godfrey, Ill., Baltimore, Md., and Moreno Valley, Calif.

“We’re excited to be here,” said Tim Miller, the son of one of the company’s owners, on International Mulch’s new location. “Hopefully we can bring in some jobs and contribute to the area. We chose this location because we need a lot of space, and there aren’t many facilities as large as this one. It’s nice to have room to grow.”

International Mulch has officially executed their lease and started to move into part of the 80,000 square feet former Badcock distribution center located on US 129 N near I-10. Earlier this month, several pieces of equipment – such as conveyors, dryers, and shelves – had already been delivered and were being arranged and installed. As of this week, all of the equipment is now in place and production supplies have been delivered as well, according to Live Oak plant manager Jeff Praga, an Oklahoman who is moving his family to Florida for his new job.

“The hospitality and kindness here is unmatched,” Praga remarked on his move. In the few weeks that he has been in the area, he has already been inundated with people looking for work, he says. International Mulch is expected to hire at least 15 people with average annual salaries of $30,000 plus benefits. Jobs haven’t been formally advertised, but according to Miller and Praga, word of mouth alone has been immensely effective. Interested jobseekers can stop by Praga’s office in the International Mulch center on 68th Terrace off of US 129 N to pick up an application.

Both Praga and Miller stated that the operation is expected to be up and running as soon as the second week of January 2015.

According to Suwannee County Economic Development Director Alvin Jackson, International Mulch is also in the process of completing their state incentives packages. The company has a capital investment of $500,000 and will draw in state incentives worth an estimated value of $102,000 plus sales tax exemptions.