YORKTON - Shift your mind back to 2006, and you arrive at a day in September which fundamentally changed the fortunes of Yorkton.
It was the day two companies separately announced they would be building large plants for processing canola here.
Suddenly Yorkton was a major hub for the canola sector as regional producers would soon have two large scale canola crushing facilities to deliver to.
The first announcement came from James Richardson International Ltd., announcing a $100-million plant capable of processing 840,000 tonnes of canola per year.
The second announcement was from Louis Dreyfus Canada Ltd., which said it would build a $90-million canola-crushing facility to handle 850,000 tonnes of canola a year.
At the time of the double barrel announcements there were many who thought one of the two projects might not move forward, but they did, creating a boom in construction, and continuing to impact the city with dozens of new jobs.
The two businesses have obviously found success, and that success has signalled growth for both too.
Richardson International Limited announced a significant investment in their canola crush plant in Yorkton in 2021 to double its processing capacity to 2.2 million metric tonnes annually.
And now Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), has announced it will expand its canola crushing facility here.
The facility's new capacity will be over two million metric tons, which is more than double its current capacity.
"This investment supports the group's strategic growth plans by reinforcing core merchandising activities, in this case with additional capacity to originate and process Canadian canola seeds to provide nourishment for people and livestock," LDC Chief Executive Officer Michael Gelchie said in a provincial government release. "It also positions LDC as a strategic feedstock provider to renewable energy producers and accelerates our contribution to a global energy transition that we are excited to be a part of."
Not surprisingly Yorkton Mayor Mitch Hippsley said the announcement is simply huge for the city.
“We’re ecstatic,” he said, adding the City “had a hint” something was coming when LDC purchased some City-owned land adjacent to its current location – land Hippsley noted was not that currently occupied by the Yellowhead stock car track.
Now that the announcement has been made Hippsley said the city will get a short-term construction boost and then long-term jobs when completed.
“It will add all kinds of new lifeblood to the city,” he said, adding construction will be a two-three-year process and that means construction crews spending dollars while in Yorkton.
And that is the true significance of the canola sector for our city, it is now foundationally critical in terms of the local economy, and the continued growth of the two plants speaks to it being a strength for years to come.
