James Richardson International Ltd. has confirmed it will immediately proceed with a canola crushing plant at Yorkton, Sask., after a vote of its board of directors.
The plant was announced in September 2006, but a dramatic escalation of construction costs required JRI to review its engineering specifications and confirm cost estimates before moving forward. The review is now complete.
“An investment of this magnitude requires a proper mix of caution and optimism,” said JRI chair Hartley Richardson, who is also president and chief executive officer of JRI’s parent company, James Richardson & Sons, Ltd.
Read Also
Stacking Canada up on gene editing livestock
Canada may want to gauge how Argentina and other countries have approached gene editing in livestock and what that has meant for local innovation.
“Given the escalation in the cost of building materials and labour, along with the volatility in agricultural commodity prices, it was important that we satisfy ourselves of the project’s long-term viability,” he said in a news release.
The company expects the plant to begin production in the second quarter of 2010.
The Yorkton plant, capable of processing 840,000 tonnes of canola a year, will triple JRI’s canola oil production and complement its Canbra Foods oilseed operation in Lethbridge.
“Over the past several years, we have witnessed a significant increase in the demand for vegetable oil generally, and canola oil specifically, on a global basis for food and biofuel,” said JRI president Curt Vossen.
“The construction of the Yorkton processing plant will allow us to better meet the existing and future needs of our worldwide customer base.”
The plant will be built in the Rural Municipality of Orkney outside Yorkton. FWS Industrial Projects Ltd. will be construction manager.
Louis Dreyfus Canada Ltd. also selected Yorkton for its 850,000 tonne canola crushing facility. In February it said it hoped to complete construction in the second quarter of 2009.
