USA: Proximity Malt nearing completion of construction of its Delaware malting plant

Specialty malted grain producer Proximity Malt LLC is nearing completion of construction on its new Laurel, Delaware processing plant, several local news organizations reported this week. The company said it hopes to make its first shipment of product manufactured at the site by Christmas, the Powder Bulk Solids reported on November 30.

Serving end users in the beer brewing industry, the Laurel plant has a planned capacity of 25,000 tonnes/yr of malts produced from wheat, barley, and other grains, according to a December 2015 company press release announcing the project. The company said it intends to hire 20 full-time staff at the plant.

“We really liked the site,” Amy Germershausen of Proximity’s sales and marketing department told the Seaford Morning Star this August. “It had an existing grain elevator which wasn’t the prettiest, [as] it had been abandoned for several years, but the concrete silos were sound, and it’s perfect for the various product segmentation that we want to do with malt, with our finished product.”

Proximity’s reasoning for selecting the Laurel location was its proximity to the area’s grain growers. The firm is also building another malt processing plant in Monte Vista, CO. Both sites will contain pilot malting and roasting labs to collaborate with customers on product development.

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