Belfast-headquartered seed specialist Germinal has announced a £5 million investment to expand grass seed processing capacity at its Lincoln site in England.

The company, which is part of the Openfolde Group, said the investment will fund purpose-built facilities and new seed intake infrastructure, more than doubling its seed cleaning and processing capacity.

The expansion is expected to improve quality assurance, reduce bottlenecks during peak harvest periods and speed up turnaround times for customers across the UK and Ireland.

Germinal said the investment will help ensure a reliable supply of its grass and clover varieties, while also improving dust control and enabling indoor seed handling.

The upgraded facilities are expected to create a safer working environment and reduce disruption caused by adverse weather conditions.

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As part of the investment, Germinal is installing a 200kW solar PV micro-generation system at the new seed intake facility.

The additional processing capacity will allow more seed cleaning activity to take place during daylight hours, increasing the use of renewable energy generated on site and helping to reduce the overall carbon footprint of operations at Lincoln.

Construction is expected to be complete by March 2027, with the new cleaning and processing plant due to be installed ahead of the 2027 harvest.

Matt Stevens, Operations Manager at Germinal GB in England, said: "This investment is about strengthening every stage of our intake, cleaning and production operations. In doubling our cleaning capacity, we are not only increasing efficiency but also improving the consistency and quality of what we can deliver to our customers.

"It allows us to reduce production pressures during periods of peak demand and helps us respond more quickly to customers and create a more flexible system overall. Ultimately, this means a better service for our customers and a stronger, more resilient seed processing operation at Lincoln serving our entire business across the United Kingdom and Ireland."

The investment comes as Germinal and its parent company, Openfolde, continue a period of growth and investment following their 200th anniversary in 2025.