International agricultural giant ConAgra is taking its first step into Manitoba, and wants to leave a big footprint.
Last week, the company’s Canadian division announced it will spend $10 million on an inland grain terminal in the Brandon-Souris area. The company is in the final stages of choosing between several sites.
The president of the Canadian division said farmers will see faster handling, better service and better prices than they may be used to.
“The terminal is being developed to provide Canadian producers with the best of everything,” said Mayo Schmidt, adding the terminal should be ready by next fall.
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The main part of the steel-constructed facility will hold 27,200 tonnes with farmer-owned condo storage of up to the same amount. Schmidt said it will be similar to the three terminals it announced for Corinne, Nokomis and Yorkton, Sask. last October.
The terminal will be able to weigh more than 400 tonnes per hour, clean up to 270 tonnes per hour and load a 100-car unit train in 10 hours.
It will employ seven full-time staff plus seasonal workers.
The facility will also include a 540 square metre grain production superstore, selling a variety of seed, fertilizer and chemicals.
The company plans to handle more than 272,000 tonnes through the facility each year: a turnover of 10 times, said Schmidt.
It will draw grain from a large area from the Saskatchewan border to Winnipeg, and south to the U.S. border.
Schmidt would not comment on the company’s hopes for market share or the amount of grain it now buys in Canada.
It is the second big announcement recently for the western Manitoba region. Saskatchewan Wheat Pool also plans to build two 35,000 to 45,000-tonne elevators in the area under its AgPro banner, one of which will be operating by next spring.
AgPro owns the largest primary elevator in the province, holding more than 25,000 tonnes, in Winnipeg. United Grain Growers follows closely behind with its 23,500 tonne elevator at Souris.
Some people in the industry wonder if there will be enough grain in the region to go around.
“Certainly, it will impact other grain handling facilities, and certainly will raise the level of competition,” Schmidt said.
The competition
Manitoba Pool Elevators owns 22 facilities in a 50 kilometre radius of Brandon, with a total storage space of more than 90,000 tonnes.
UGG owns seven elevators in the same area with total storage of 51,170 tonnes.
Cargill, N.M. Paterson, Pioneer, Louis-Dreyfus and Archer Daniels Midland also own facilities within 50 km of Brandon.
Bruce Johnson, executive vice-president of Saskatchewan Wheat Pool’s grain group, said over-building is a concern for everyone in the grain industry.
But Johnson said ConAgra’s announcement was no surprise.
“It just is fleshing out the competitive dynamic,” he said. “We had expected a ConAgra announcement.”
