JOHNSTON COUNTY, N.C. -- Deere & Co. plans to expand an existing Johnston County distribution center to accommodate increasing demand for the lawn and golf-course mowing equipment made at its plant in nearby Fuquay-Varina. 
The expansion will add 100,000 square feet to a 200,000-square-foot warehouse outside Benson.
The commercial and consumer division of Deere, the world's largest farm-equipment maker, is seeing a surge in business as the economy recovers. Last year, the company agreed to sell lawn equipment at Home Depot stores, a deal that also increased sales.
Deere officials earlier this year said they had hired Carolantic Realty to find space to build or lease a 350,000-square-foot distribution center in the area.
For now, the Benson expansion will meet the company's needs, said Bill Klutho, manager of public relations for Deere's commercial and consumer division, which is based in Cary. But future warehouse expansion is not out of the question, Klutho said.
The planned expansion in Benson "cements our relationship with North Carolina and shows our commitment to the state," he said.
CrossPoint Associates of Wilmington manages the Benson warehouse. The company could add jobs to handle the increased inventory, Klutho said. CrossPoint officials couldn't be reached for comment.
In addition to the Benson facility, Deere has another warehouse in Charlotte that supports the Fuquay plant.
Besides the Fuquay facility, Deere's commercial and consumer division also oversees manufacturing plants in Greenville, Tenn.; Augusta, Ga.; Germany; the Netherlands; and Horicon, Wis. -- the primary producer of lawn tractors.
The Deere division reported $3.2 billion in sales last year. The biggest sellers were lawn and golf course equipment, which are made at the Fuquay plant.
Deere has about 1,050 employees in the Triangle, split between the Fuquay plant and the headquarters of the commercial and consumer division in Cary.