The seed companies Nickerson (UK) and Advanta UK have announced integration and restructuring plans for their joint activities. These plans are based on studies that were initiated after the acquisition of Advanta's European activities by the French company, Groupe Limagrain on February 15th 2005.

Advanta UK will be integrated with Nickerson (UK) to create a single UK company. The proposed name of the company is Nickerson - Advanta Ltd. The company will operate a dual branding strategy centred around two operating divisions.

The Nickerson operating division will concentrate its activities in the arable sector and be responsible for the marketing of cereals, oilseeds and peas from the research programmes within the group.

The Advanta business unit will be the focus of the company's forage and amenity activities including maize, forage and amenity grasses and root seeds. No change to the existing distribution policy for the successful range of Advanta forage and amenity products is planned.

In the new structure Nickerson activities will be based at Rothwell (commercial) and Holton-le-Clay (production processing). The Advanta division will be based at a new dedicated site combining commercial, production and logistics functions for all forage and amenity products. This will ensure that the high level of service experienced by their customers will be maintained.

The new company will retain the two existing wheat breeding programmes based at Woolpit (Suffolk) and Docking (Norfolk), and concentrate barley and oilseed rape breeding at Rothwell (Lincolnshire). Some trialling activities of forage crops will be maintained at Boothby Graffoe (Lincolnshire). Administrative and head office functions will be centred at the Rothwell site.

Managing director of Nickerson (UK), Paul Canham, who has acted as chairman of the UK integration team, will continue as managing director of the new company. Thomas Jolliffe, Advanta's managing director, will join the senior management team of the merged company and head up the Advanta division.

Commenting on the integration plans, Paul Canham says: "In consolidating the activities of the two companies we have attempted to ensure that the combined research capability of the company is enhanced through the sharing of technology and breeding expertise. The decision to maintain two wheat breeding centres reflects our confidence in both to produce a flow of competitive wheat varieties in the future.

"The creation of two business units accessing varieties from the different research programmes within the group recognises the different commercial and logistical requirements in the arable sector and the forage and amenity sectors. We believe that the business model we will establish will set new standards for the industry in terms of research capability, product quality and service.

"Detailed integration plans will be discussed with staff from both companies as part of the consultation process. These will be phased over the next year to ensure continuity of all activities, and to achieve the essential consolidation for an industry that needs to prepare for a new and challenging era in European agriculture."