Company officials, peanut farmers and city and county officials attended the ground breaking ceremony

Brooks Peanut Company in Samson, Alabama has formed Escambia Peanut Company, LLC near Flomaton, Alabama. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Thursday, April 18^th at 3:00 pm at the site of the new facility off of Hwy. 113.

The Flomaton company is a joint venture including Brooks Peanut and a group of area peanut producers. The new facility will procure, dry, grade and warehouse peanuts from a 50 mile radius. Escambia Peanut will construct a warehouse facility capable of storing up to 15,000 tons of peanuts. The estimated capital investment is between $6 and $7 million and the company will initially hire around 6 employees. During harvest, as many as 25 seasonal workers could be hired. For the duration of the three month harvest & buying season, the plant will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Marshall Rogers, Director of the Escambia County Industrial Development Authority, said, "We are pleased that Escambia Peanut has chosen our community for their new plant. We welcome them and look forward to watching the company grow". 

Flomaton Mayor Dewey Bondurant, Commissioner David Stokes & Commissioner Brandon Smith at the ceremony

Jim Searcy, Executive Director of Coastal Gateway Regional Economic Development Alliance said, "Escambia Peanut is an excellent company and will have a positive impact on the entire CGEDA region. We understand what our community has to offer and it is gratifying when those attributes are recognized by others. We have a great team with the Escambia County Commission, the Escambia County Industrial Development Authority, and many others".

The facility should be operational by September 1^st, 2013 according to company officials. Contracts are already being signed with area peanut farmers for the 2013 crop year.