ERNFOLD, Sask. – Another plank in the organic elevator is being put in place.
An elevator in Ernfold, Sask., has been converted to handle organically grown crops and it just shipped out its first load of durum.
People involved with the project say it is the first certified all-organic elevator on the Prairies, and they say it will make it easier to market organic crops, increase the number of organic growers and help “legitimize” the industry.
“This (elevator) will allow us the luxury of storing, cleaning, blending grain into a large facility on track, on a major highway. It’s going to make the process of marketing organic grain internationally more efficient,” said trader Neil Strayer.
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The Ernfold elevator was slated to close last year. It was a normal grain handling elevator, but a new elevator at nearby Hodgeville and upgrading of the elevators at Morse and Chaplin sealed its doom.
Pool took a risk
But after the closure announcement, Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, which owns the facility, decided to take a risk and convert it to handle organic products. It was certified in January, and shipped its first grain in early February.
“It was a leap of faith for some of us on the business side,” said the pool’s Dave Carvell. “It’s a matter of understanding how we can accomplish some of our operations in a different way.”
Carvell said the elevator will be assessed in the fall to see whether it is a success. If it can process 6,000 tonnes per year, it will likely be viable, he said.
Carvell said he expects the elevator will draw from as far away as 300 kilometres
“I’ve been in the trade for 12 years and I’m witnessing growth we can’t even begin to keep up with,” he said. “We just don’t have the supply.”
Carvell thinks the organic market is “going to mushroom” and the pool wants to be in on the action.
Until now, organic producers have been forced to clean and store their grain at small, organically certified cleaning plants. This has created a “logistical nightmare” because “most of the small cleaning plants don’t have the storage, blending and mixing capability or rail loading capacity that’s needed. Some don’t even have truck scales,” Strayer said.
If the Ernfold elevator works out, the company might look at a few more locations, he said.
Local organic farmer Allan Penner said he thinks bringing the elevator on line has been enough to make some producers seriously consider going organic.
Judging by the number of telephone calls, there must be a lot of interest in the Ernfold elevator, he said.
Ernfold organic farmer Kevin Beach said the number of organic growers in the area might grow quickly because many older farmers have been farming without using chemicals, and have not bothered to be certified.
Strayer said there is demand enough to support another 500 organic producers.
