REGINA (Staff) – The small town of Kipling, Sask. isn’t the normal staging ground for an international company making its first foray into the North American market.
Yet, the decision makes sense for the world’s second largest pig breeding company, says Dalland Value Added Pork Inc. president Brian Tennant.
“They import 85 percent of their feed ingredients,” he said of the Netherlands-based Dalland company. “This is a country that fits between Saskatoon and Regina and produces more pork than Canada. Holland has 2,000 pigs per square kilometre.”
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The ability to turn plant protein into animal protein is very important, he said, and Dalland strives for a quality product from a low cost of production. Canada, and Saskatchewan in particular, has the grain to provide feed at a reasonable cost, Tennant said.
“We’re central in North America with close proximity to the American border,” he said of the Kipling investor group who signed a joint venture with Dalland.
“Plus we live near a source of high quality grains. I see pig production going to where there is grain production in the world. We can create an industry that consumes grain.”
Dalland VAP created 12 construction jobs while facilities were being built. Five full-time jobs have been created at the nucleus farm and Tennant said more jobs could follow in sales.
