ADEL — Cook County welcomed Custom Ag Formulators with a groundbreaking Tuesday morning.

Custom Ag Formulators is a Fresno, Calif. based company that manufactures liquid and dry fertilizers as well as provides toll blending services for other companies.

“All our hard work has finally paid off,” said Michael Dinnerman, vice-chairman of the Cook County Economic Development Commission, in his opening remarks at the groundbreaking.

The first phase of Custom Ag Formulators’ project will be the construction and installation of a 20,000 sq. ft. facility that will employ 16 people and represents over $800,000 in capital investment. That facility will be used to produce liquid fertilizer.

Phase two will add a facility for dry fertilizer and hire a comparable number of people.

Work on the project site is scheduled to start in the next couple of weeks, with Jan. 1 planned as the first day of business.

This is the first company to locate at the South Georgia Megasite, a 3,000 acre area a few miles south of Adel on U.S. 41.

Jerry Steward, CEO of Custom Ag Formulators, thanked Cook County and the state of Georgia, highlighting the difference he experienced in planning a facility in Georgia versus California.

“It’s been amazing, what you’ve done for us,” said Steward. “Over our 19 years of business, we’ve built three facilities in Fresno, one in Goondiwindi, Australia. This has gone so smooth. We’ve had nothing but nightmares in California. Everybody we’ve dealt with here, we’ve been working on a handshake to get this facility going.”

With a Jan. 1 start date, hiring for the new facility is now underway.

“We’re hiring everybody from the area here,” said Steward. “We’re transferring nobody out here. All the new employees will come from here. We’re starting the process right now with interviewing.”

Stuart Taylor is a reporter for the Valdosta Daily Times.