Richardson Pioneer Limited continues to expand its retail crop inputs network across Western Canada with an agreement to acquire Crop First Agro, an independent retail crop inputs centre in Grenfell, SK.
“We look forward to establishing a presence in Grenfell and working with local customers to provide them with leading seed, fertilizer and crop inputs technologies, supported by our CropWatchTM agronomy team and best-in-class service,” said Tom Hamilton, Vice-President, Agribusiness Operations in a prepared release.
Crop First Agro has been a key service provider in the Grenfell market for several years, selling seed and crop protection products and providing agronomic advice.Richardson plans to add a high speed fertilizer blender to further enhance services available to customers in the area.
“The experienced management and staff of Crop First Agro have been the cornerstone of their success,” said Hamilton. “We are pleased that all employees are now part of our team.”
“We are excited to join the Richardson team and greatly strengthen the services we offer to our customers,” said Dave Edgar, co-owner of Crop First Agro in the same release. “Richardson has an excellent, longstanding reputation in the crop inputs business, which will enhance our current business.”
The acquisition of Crop First Agro adds to Richardson’s expanding crop inputs network. The company is currently building three new crop inputs centres in other locations in Saskatchewan. In September, Richardson announced it is building new crop inputs facilities in Pasqua, Elrose and Wakaw. These facilities are expected to be fully operational by the end of 2017.
“We are very focused on growing our retail crop inputs network across the Prairies,” said Hamilton. “We will continue to look for strategic areas where there are opportunities to expand our Richardson Pioneer network.”
Richardson Pioneer is a division of Richardson International, Canada’s leading agribusiness. Recognized as a global leader in agriculture and food processing, 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. One of Canada’s Best Managed Companies, Richardson has over 2,500 employees across Canada and the U.S.
