The Scoular Co. has announced its acquisition of the assets of McAlister Grain Co. Scoular's acquisition included four grain-handling facilities located in Friars Point and Clarksdale, Miss., and Helena and Old Town, Ark. Terms of the transaction were not announced.

The newly acquired truck and barge locations will be incorporated into Scoular's North American grain marketing network that already includes a barge-loading facility in Helena, Ark. “Scoular is pleased to have an opportunity to expand our business in the Mississippi Delta. The purchase of these four facilities was a natural next step to further serve producers and end-users in this area,” said Chuck Elsea, Scoular senior vice president who will oversee the newly acquired facilities.

“The Davis family is very pleased to have Scoular expand its presence in the Delta. We are confident that Scoular will add to our grain marketing options while maintaining the high level of service producers have come to expect. Our family remains committed to the area through our other businesses and looks forward to a close business partnership with Scoular,” said Clint Davis, president of McAlister Grain.

The Scoular Co. hopes to have positions for most if not all McAlister employees. Management of the four former McAlister facilities and Scoular's previously-owned Helena barge-loading facility will be shared by McAlister Controller Philip Clegg and Scoular's Dustin Loseke, manager of Scoular's Helena barge facility.

In addition to its purchase of the four McAlister facilities, Scoular is in the process of improving its previously-owned Helena operation. Scoular's improvement project, slated for completion in early 2009, includes adding 610,000 bushels of storage space and increasing truck unloading capacity for faster and more efficient handling of corn, soybeans, wheat, sorghum, and rice.

For more information about The Scoular Co., visit the company's Web site at www.scoular.com.