Farmers of North America (FNA), the Saskatoon-based farmers’ cooperative that boasts some 8,000 members, is continuing to broaden its fertilizer imprint in the Canadian market. According to local reports, FNA brought in 3,200 mt of 16-16-16 fertilizer to the port of Wallaceburg, Ont., on July 22 and 23. The fertilizer arrived on two vessels from Russian producer Acron Group, and signaled what Wallaceburg officials hope is a reemergence of the city’s importance as an inland deep water port.
The Sydenham River runs through Wallaceburg, about 50 kilometers south of Sarnia, and provides a water connection to Lake St. Clair and the rest of the Great Lakes water basin. The Chatham-Kent government and the Wallaceburg Community Task Force spearheaded efforts in recent years to remake the port infrastructure at Wallaceburg, including dredging operations last year and the establishment of a sediment management plan. Recent barge shipments to the port have included corn to supply ethanol plants in Sarnia and Chatham. FNA now hopes to make Wallaceburg a key part of its fertilizer distribution system in Canada.
Local reports quoted FNA’s Randy Furlan as saying the location is “in the heart of our membership, strategically located between Sarnia and Windsor. Along with the roads, water and rail, that is one of the main reasons why we came.”
FNA said it is working with Chatham-Kent to try to make the Wallaceburg port designation official through the involvement of the provincial and federal governments. FNA’s Ontario regional manager, Nic Walby, said in a company news release that FNA views the infrastructure initiative at Wallaceburg as critical to farmers across Ontario and Canada.
“Restoring the port and rail system in Wallaceburg will even benefit farmers west of Ontario as imports from the East Coast will be moved to Wallaceburg at much lower costs,” Walby said. “FNA sees this commitment to infrastructure, particularly the port and rail, as the final conditions required for FNA to commit greater resources of its own, building investment in the community.”
“Wallaceburg should be an integral part of Canada’s inland infrastructure,” Mayor Randy Hope told the local press at the time of the fertilizer arrival in July. “At a time when all levels of government are declaring the need to invest in infrastructure, we must capitalize on this strategic resource. Not only can the port of Wallaceburg boost the regional economy, but it can help us achieve our country’s environmental goals through the lower carbon emissions produced by shipping.”
FNA has previously brought in ammonium nitrate fertilizer from Russia through the inland port at Churchill, Manitoba, on Hudson Bay (GM Oct. 22, 2007). The group also landed a vessel of urea at Montreal when FNA expanded its operations into Quebec in May (GM May 25, p. 1). In addition to AN and urea, FNA also supplies its members with imported UAN, MAP, crop protection products, fuel, feed, and a wide range of farm equipment.