Colfax, WA (July 28, 2020) – The McGregor Company retail branches in Clarkston and Garfield, Washington as well as Lewiston and Twin Falls, Idaho were each honored by achieving certification from ResponsibleAg this summer. Over the course of the next year, The McGregor Company will strive to add this certification at all retail branches. The ResponsibleAg Certification Program is the only program in the nation that provides a voluntary comprehensive assessment of agricultural facilities that store and handle farm input supplies such as fertilizer, crop protection products, seed and fuel. Certification requires that a facility meet stringent regulatory-based criteria, implement industry-leading safety and security measures, and uphold facility safety as one of its highest priorities.

Dale Deerkop with The McGregor Company said, “ResponsibleAg certification demonstrates to our community and our customers that we are a safe and responsible partner within the community. The ResponsibleAg assessment was very thorough and an excellent mechanism for ensuring that we are complying with the federal requirements. We take great pride in this third-party certification. It reinforces our commitment to our employees and the community.”

“Participation in ResponsibleAg is voluntary,” said Tim McArdle, Chairman of ResponsibleAg, Inc. “It is incumbent on all to ensure we are a safe, responsible and proactive industry. Our hope is to engage our entire industry in this beneficial program over the next few years.”

Mark Johnson of The McGregor Company adds, “There are hundreds of regulations from different regulatory agencies that an agribusiness such as ours must follow. Voluntarily participating in the program and attaining certification helps ensure we are making our facility and our daily practices safer for our communities, our customers and employees. We must repeat and pass the assessment every three years to maintain our ResponsibleAg certification.”

“Each ResponsibleAg certification is a significant milestone for all of us who have been involved in creating ResponsibleAg, and The McGregor Company should be proud of this achievement,” said Daren Coppock, President and CEO of the Agricultural Retailers Association, which helped develop and launch the program. “The commitment of retailers to responsibility and safety is evident in this success, and in the thousands of facilities that have already signed up to participate and are working toward certifications of their own.”

“The fertilizer and agricultural industry is, and always has been, dedicated to operating safely within our communities,” said Corey Rosenbusch, President of The Fertilizer Institute, which partnered with ARA to create ResponsibleAg. “This certification is a rigorous assessment that assures each community just how committed we are to their safety and security.”

More information about ResponsibleAg and its certification process, including a list of agribusinesses that have been successfully certified, are available at www.responsibleag.org.

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