Bord na Mona has sold the marketing aspect of its "Shamrock" brand of peat products to a leading US lawn and garden care company, Scotts, for an undisclosed sum. The Shamrock product, well known in gardening and horticultural circles as a "growing medium", has its principal market in Britain and achieved more than £10 million in turnover for the State-owned company last year.

Mr Donal Clarke, head of corporate affairs at Bord na Mona, said the company would continue to make the product and Scotts would market it.

"We want to simplify our business and they are extremely good at marketing. We have been able to reduce our overheads as a result of this."

He added that £4 million was being invested in the factories which package the peat and manufacture compost, employing about 300 people.

The chief executive of Scotts, Mr Charles Berger, said the company intended "to leverage Bord na Mona's vast low-cost peat reserves" across Europe.

Among its British assets, Scotts owns Levington, the garden care company and Miracle-Gro, the plant fertiliser.

It also owns the Weedol and Pathclear herbicide brands. Scotts also has interests in Britain, France and the Benelux countries

Ms Rebecca Bruening, vicepresident and treasurer of Scotts, added that the price paid for Shamrock was "immaterial to our balance sheet". Scotts made a gross profit of $128 million (£84 million) for the third quarter on a turnover of $367 million.

Bord na Mona's annual profits were down almost £2 million to £4.9 million for the year to March last.