A 90,000t grain storage and handling facility is to be built to serve farmers in the East Midlands.

Camgrain‘s Advanced Processing Centre two miles north of Kettering will take assured wheat, barley and oilseed rape from growers mostly within a 30-mile radius of the store, to supply a range of local food customers that could include Sainsbury’s, Weetabix, Whitworths, Rank Hovis, ADM and Heygates.

The first phase of construction at the 19.5ha site is expected to provide a 55,000t facility ready for harvest 2012, while phase two will increase capacity to 90,000t.

The project received £4.39m of grant support from the East Midlands Development Agency and has also been backed by around 50 farmer sponsors/members and farmer-owned grain marketing business Openfield.

“This is the first time that a strategic grain storage and processing facility has been directly sited to suit end-user needs as well as those of local growers,” said Camgrain chairman John Latham.

Local farmer David Reynolds said construction of such a facility in the region was long overdue and would be a major benefit to growers. “Food processors will have the confidence to draw upon local grain of assured quality and food safety, with full traceability.”