The reliability of LimeX for your farming business

Fri 16 October 2026

Tim Boxall, a contractor for spraying and spreading in Kent at T.D. Boxall Ltd. explains why his business turned to LimeX and shares its experience sourcing the product, despite being outside the sugar beet growing region.

Tim, based in Headcorn, Kent, has operated his business for more than 40 years, primarily using bulk-delivered products, including fertilisers like Fibrophos, LimeX, and local quarry lime.

Over the past year, his business has seen increased demand for lime to neutralise soil pH across his clients’ farms.

“As a contractor, we're seeing farmers using more lime, particularly last year. There was a lot more liming going on because I think people didn't want to spend the money on fertiliser, so they wanted to bring up their soil pHs to release what was available in the soil,” says Tim.

“We found it a challenge to get as much lime as possible, which is why we moved into LimeX to fill the gap and the supply issues as it was more readily available”.

A reliable liming source

Even though Tim is outside the sugar beet growing area, sourcing LimeX has been smooth and efficient.

“Getting LimeX from British Sugar has been absolutely no problem at all. It's no different from us sourcing fertilisers from further afield. Transport's been good, prices have been competitive compared to local quarries, and we've been able to maintain a supply of product. That's a big issue for us,” he says.

It’s not just sourcing that has been a good experience; repeat custom has also shown a strong reception from his farmers.

“We've got one repeat customer this spring, mainly from a supply issue point of view, but also the consistency of the product. It spreads well as a smaller particle and increases the pH rapidly”.

Emily Whitmarsh, LimeX Technical Sales Manager, says that LimeX is available nationwide and reassures customers that sourcing is simple.

“With all my contractors and farmers, I ensure a smooth delivery from start to finish and continue to communicate throughout the process. It’s often a misconception that LimeX is only available in sugar beet growing areas, however, I want to reassure people that we deliver across the UK”.

Small particles with big results

George Franklin, part of Tim’s team who operates the spreaders and sprayers, discusses his experience with LimeX in the field and explains the importance of correct soil pH.

“LimeX is a very, very consistent product, easy to spread and covers the width we need to spread it,” says George.

“It's a faster-acting product because it's a very small particle size, so it reacts faster in the soil.”

George explains that, in the past, he has seen grass yields drop significantly on farms that forgot to lime.

“pH is an issue when you're taking off large quantities of high-yielding crops. You're going to have lower phosphate levels and obviously lower lime levels as time goes on, especially if it hasn't been addressed for a number of years.”

Josie Boxall, sprayer and spreader operator, adds that T.D. Boxall Ltd uses weigh loaders on the machines to apply LimeX accurately across different fields and farms.

“Having the weigh loaders means we can continually check the calibration of the spreaders for peace of mind that the LimeX is going on at the right application rate.”