Viterra opens new grain facility in Canada

CANADA — Viterra Canada Inc., a Canadian agriculture commodities business, officially opened its new high-throughput grain facility in Saskatchewan, Canada.

Customers, employees, and government officials gathered to celebrate the occasion at the facility in west-central Saskatchewan. It has a storage capacity of 34,000 tonnes of grain and can load up to 156 railcars through a loop track. 

Kyle Jeworski, chief executive officer for Viterra North America said the company’s significant investment in the new grain elevator demonstrates its confidence that the area will continue to play an important role in Canadian and global agriculture for many more years to follow.

“We are proud to revitalize our presence through this facility, and of what it will mean to farmers, suppliers, and other stakeholders in this province and in this community,” he said.

Based in Regina, Saskatchewan, Viterra Canada Inc. operates 79 licensed grain storage facilities and has more than 17,500 employees operating in 37 countries.

Viterra claims to supply sustainable, traceable and quality-controlled agricultural products. According to the company, its network of storage, processing, and transport assets connects producers and consumers.

“We recognize that our success as a company is tied to the high level of service we provide to our customers, and their ability to provide us with the quality products we need to meet our end users’ expectations worldwide,” Jeworski said.

“Further, we’re proud to make a positive impact with this project through local employment opportunities and other economic benefits.”

The crop trading business spun out of Glencore which purchased it for US$6.1 billion almost a decade ago, as it looked to expand its agricultural trading division under the previous CEO Ivan Glasenberg.

It then sold just over half of the business to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and British Columbia Investment Management Corp in 2016 as part of an effort to reduce debt but also as a way of increasing its firepower for possible acquisitions.

In 2020 it became a standalone company and was rebranded as Viterra but a transformational deal had proved elusive until now.

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