The 27,000 tonne grain store at Stratford-upon-Avon operated by Arable Crop Storage (ACS) had its application to merge with a store in Cambridgeshire approved by the UK Financial Services Authority this week. The groups behind the merger have said this will provide benefits for arable farmers across the West and Central Midlands come harvest time.

Following a review of the business in 2010 the board of directors at ACS concluded that a merger would be the best way for it to deliver the level of service and market access needed by members.

With ACS already part of the OpenfieldNetwork of stores the decision was taken to approach Camgrain, a fellow member of the Network and the UK’s largest farmer-owned central storage business, to consider how a merger could unlock value for members.

The Stratford Advanced Processing Centre (Stratford APC), as it is now known, has become the fourth site in the Camgrain operation sitting strategically alongside two stores in Cambridgeshire and a new 70,000-tonne facility at Kettering, Northamptonshire that will be operational for harvest 2012.

The merger, which was completed in mid-May, will secure access to more valuable markets meaning growers across the region can invest in their businesses with greater confidence.

Openfield said the merger represents “a significant step in the continued development of the Openfield Network” and that, after Camgrain was invited to manage the Stratford store for harvest 2011, the 63 ACS farmer members, covering an area from Buckinghamshire to Worcestershire and the Cotswolds, noticed an improvement in the level of member service.

During harvest 2011 opening hours were extended to 24-hours a day, seven days a week to enable more efficient movement of grain from farm during the peak of harvest.

For organic growers the Stratford APC will be registered to handle crops from harvest 2012 onwards, offering a valuable facility in close proximity to both growers and primary processors of organic crops. Camgrain also said the merger would benefit farmers in the West looking for access to maltsters and brewers and those in the East seeking access to bakers and flour millers.