Yesterday, Gov. Andy Beshear officially welcomed Bosch Berries. The international grower and distributor of bell peppers, blackberries, and strawberries will be locating a new greenhouse operation in Somerset. It invested nearly $50 million and created 28 full-time Kentucky jobs.
“The growth within Kentucky’s agritech industry has played a key role in the state’s continued economic momentum and prosperity,” Gov. Beshear said. “Bosch Berries’ plan to locate its first location in the United States right here in the commonwealth speaks volumes about what our state has to offer. This is an incredible investment for southcentral Kentucky and the Pulaski County community, and I look forward to a long, successful partnership.”
Bosch Berries has acquired the previously established AppHarvest facility in Somerset to locate the company’s first greenhouse operation in the United States. The existing greenhouse infrastructure should allow the company to enhance the growing environment to maximize production capacity, implement new technologies to optimize growing efficiencies, reduce waste, and gain access to the U.S. market. The existing greenhouse, which has been operational since November 2022, is over 30 acres and capable of growing approximately 1 million strawberry plants at a time.
“We are thrilled with the acquisition of the Somerset facility and to become a part of the Somerset community,” said Tijmen and Wouter van den Bosch, co-directors of Bosch Berries. “With some technical changes we have planned for this summer and introducing the best practices we have built through 90 years of greenhouse experience; we will make it one of the most successful greenhouses of its kind. We want to thank all employees and partners who share our belief in better berries, which are tasty, fresh, clean, sustainable, and always available. Somerset deserves better berries; Kentucky deserves better berries, and the United States deserves better berries. Be on the lookout in your local grocery store for hydroponically grown strawberries.”
Based out of the Netherlands, Bosch Berries is a sixth-generation family farm operation founded in 1854 that specializes in growing and distributing bell peppers, blackberries and strawberries. The company has been involved with greenhouse cultivation since the 1930s and in 2017, ventured into greenhouse berry production, focusing on the production of delicious, year-round blackberries. Today, the company operates two greenhouses and looks forward to entering the U.S. market and growing the North American berry industry.
Pulaski County Judge/Executive, Marshall Todd said: “When life hands you berries, you make the best of the situation. And in the case of Bosch Berries, Pulaski County welcomes them and is very appreciative of their willingness to acquire the property formerly known as AppHarvest. We hope that they will prosper in their new home and grow not only locally sourced products but also community relationships we can cultivate for generations to come.”
Somerset Mayor Alan Keck said: “Our community is excited and appreciative of Bosch Berries for their commitment to the Somerset facility. I firmly believe they will execute on the promise that fresh produce will be grown using state-of-the-art technology for decades to come.”
Chris Girdler, president and CEO of the Somerset-Pulaski County Economic Development Authority, said: “We, as a community, are very excited about the Bosch Berries acquisition of the Somerset facility. They bring to bear many decades of farming experience, and we are grateful for their investment in the Capital of Lake Cumberland. It has been a privilege to work with Tijmen and Wouter van den Bosch, and the future is very bright for everyone involved.”
Bosch Berries’ investment and job creation builds on one the best four-year period for economic growth in state history.
Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced more than 1,000 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling over $30 billion in announced investments, creating more than 51,800 jobs. This is one of the highest investment figures secured during the tenure of any governor in the commonwealth’s history.
The job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. The average incentivized hourly wage in 2022 and 2023 topped $26 in consecutive years for the first time.
The Governor’s administration also secured one of the largest General Fund budget surpluses and the Rainy Day Fund. In addition, Kentucky had relatively low unemployment rates.
To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority in October 2023 preliminarily approved an incentive agreement with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program.
By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.
In addition, Bosch Berries can receive resources from Kentucky’s workforce service providers. Those include no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training, and job-training incentives.
For more information:
Bosch Berries
www.boschberries.com