Winnipeg grain firm Richardson International plans to expand its crop input retail business across the Prairies, starting in central and western Saskatchewan with plans for two new stores and a rebuilt store.

The company said Monday it will replace its crop input facility at Wakaw, about 90 km northeast of Saskatoon, and build new at Pasqua, just east of Moose Jaw, and at Elrose, about 110 km north of Swift Current.

The new facilities will each have high-speed fertilizer blending capabilities, “modern” offices and a 6,000-square-foot crop input warehouse. Construction is to start this fall, with the plan being to have the new stores up and running by “later 2017.”

Richardson also plans to announce “additional new builds in the coming months,” Tom Hamilton, the company’s vice-president for agribusiness operations, said in a release.

The three sites named so far in Saskatchewan are in areas the company said it identified as “opportunities” in its Richardson Pioneer network, as part of its capital expansion plan.

Hamilton said the company looked forward to becoming part of the communities of Pasqua and Elrose and to “improving our business” in Wakaw. — AGCanada.com Network