The Lubbock Economic Development Alliance announced Monsanto, an agriculture company, will build a $140 million, state of the art, cotton seed processing facility in North Lubbock by summer 2017.
“With this plant we will be the epicenter for all cotton seed production going forward,” LEDA Chairman Tim Collins said. “We’re going to have tourism we’ve already had inquiries from people from Australia, India, other cotton producing countries who want to come and understand this technology.”
Collins said it’s the largest investment LEDA’s ever acquired.
“$11.2 million in annual value added impact to our economy from the operations of the plant,” Collins said.
Collins said it took nearly eight months for Monsanto to pick Lubbock as it’s location.
Monsanto said it’s an easy decision.
“Being right in the middle of one of the biggest cotton patches in the world and with Monsanto coming in as well arguably is going to be one of the biggest globally,” Monsanto cotton manufacturing lead David Penn said.
The facility will span 150 acres in North Lubbock along I-27.
The facility will be Monsanto’s hub for all cotton seed processing such as cleaning, treating and bagging Monsanto’s Deltapine brand cotton seed.
It’ll also create around 60 new jobs.