Richardson acquiring CHS Canada's 10 retail outlets

Richardson International has reached a deal to acquire CHS Canada’s 10 crop input retail outlets in Western Canada.

The deal signals the exit of the American farmer-owned co-op from the crop retail business on the Canadian prairies, after entering with the acquisition of independent retailer DynAgra Corp in 2012.

“CHS is grateful to the growers and employees who have been loyal to its Canadian retail business. It was with their best, long-term interests in mind that we pursued this agreement and it is particularly important we acknowledge the tireless efforts of all our CHS employees in Canada,” said CHS in a statement shared with RealAgriculture. “They have always stayed focused on our customers and their needs, while working hard to improve operations. Details of the transaction are not being made public.”

The locations are all full-service crop input retailers, providing chemical, fertilizer and seed services to farmers and ranchers, with one in Saskatchewan and nine in Alberta.

“We look forward to expanding our presence in these areas and working with local producers to provide them with leading seed, fertilizer and crop inputs technologies, supported by our CropWatch agronomy team and best-in-class service,” said Tom Hamilton, Richardson’s vice-president, agribusiness operations.

Richardson has made numerous announcements around acquisitions and expansions in 2017:

• January – a deal was signed to acquire Crop First Agro in Grenfell, SK.
• June – the company acquired European Oat Growers.
• August – it announced the addition of two retails in Vermillion and Forestburg, AB to its network.
• This summer – it opened a new centre in Elrose, SK.
• November – it’s expected to open another new centre in Pasqua, SK.

“At Richardson Pioneer, we are focused on building our retail crop inputs business and expanding our network across Western Canada,” says Hamilton. “We will continue to target strategic locations to expand our presence and ultimately offer our services, products and expertise to more producers across the Prairies.”

The deal for the acquisition of ten CHS Canada locations is expected to close in November.