Richardson Pioneer provides grain handling and production services as well as assistance in agronomy, seed, crop protection products, fertilizer and grain marketing in Western Canada.
Richardson Pioneer provides grain handling and production services as well as assistance in agronomy, seed, crop protection products, fertilizer and grain marketing in Western Canada.
“We are continuing to aggressively invest in our crop inputs business to grow our Richardson Pioneer network and expand our reach to offer our services to more customers across Western Canada,” said Tom Hamilton, vice-president, Agribusiness Operations. “We are excited to invest in these three locations in Saskatchewan now and plan to announce additional new builds in the coming months.”
Richardson Pioneer’s newest crop inputs facilities will be located in Pasqua, near Moose Jaw; Elrose; and at Wakaw, Saskatchewan. While Pasqua and Elrose are brand new locations for Richardson Pioneer, the new crop inputs center in Wakaw will replace Richardson Pioneer’s current facility at that location. These three areas in Saskatchewan were identified as opportunities within the Richardson Pioneer network as part of Richardson’s ongoing capital expansion plan, the company said.
Richardson Pioneer’s three new crop inputs sites will each have high-speed fertilizer blending capabilities, modern offices and a 6,000-square-foot, AWSA-certified warehouse to provide customers with crop inputs products and service. The company intends to have all three new facilities fully operational by late 2017.
“We look forward to being part of the communities of Pasqua and Elrose and improving our business in Wakaw, providing local producers with access to state-of-the-art crop inputs facilities and full agronomic services through our Crop Watch agronomy team,” Hamilton said.
The announcement is the latest in a recent series of expansion and investments by Richardson. On Aug. 17 the company unveiled plans to invest C$120 million in its canola processing plant in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. The investment will be used to maximize operating efficiencies and modernize the facility to significantly increase canola crush capability, the company said.
In June, Richardson invested C$15 million to create a new research farm in Saskatchewan to further Canadian agriculture. Bennett Farm, a 444-acre demonstration farm and training center located in Richardson, Saskatchewan, outside of Regina, will allow Richardson and its partners to put the latest seed varieties, crop input products and equipment to the test in real growing conditions.
The company also completed a C$140 million expansion of an export terminal in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in May. The project added an 80,000-tonne concrete grain storage annex to the company’s terminal, increasing storage capacity to 178,000 tonnes. The terminal now has an upgraded and enhanced rail yard and receiving system to handle and process railcars more efficiently as well as the ability to handle in excess of 6 million tonnes each year.
Richardson Pioneer is a division of Richardson International. Richardson is a worldwide handler and merchandiser of all major Canadian-grown grains and oilseeds and a vertically-integrated processor and manufacturer of oats and canola-based products. Richardson has over 2,500 employees across Canada and the U.S.
