Springhill Farms capturing opportunities

On April 23, Neepawa’s Springhill Farms LP was recognized for its role in the area’s economic development. Springhill was awarded the Economic Development Innovation Award (corporate) at this year’s Capturing Opportunities celebration banquet held in Brandon. Springhill Farms LP is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hytek Ltd.

The award was to recognize corporations that contribute to the economic development of a community or region through partnerships with community organizations or individuals.

The nomination forms outlined Springhill’s contributions to economic development, foremost among those being its expansion over the last year.

The company has invested $59 million to expand its pork processing facility, which has in turn driven employment growth. The company, which was Neepawa’s largest employer before the expansion, increased employment from 311 to 500 workers. This growth has included attracting 173 foreign workers, mainly from South Korea, the Philippines and the Ukraine, to the area.

These new residents have helped their communities by purchasing or renting accommodations and by patronizing local businesses.
The workers’ families are already starting to arrive.

The nomination forms noted that the company has helped the immigrants integrate by working closely with the communities of Gladstone, Neepawa and Minnedosa, where many of the workers live. The company has also provided resources for translation.
Springhill has a dedicated staff member working on community and business relations which has resulted in strong communication. This open dialogue has led to information about the company’s recruitment efforts and overall corporate goals and objectives, as well as local area communities’ objectives, foreign recruitment challenges and opportunities.

The award was accepted by Guy Baudry, CEO, Springhill Farms, Denis Vielfaure, vicepresident of project development and environment and Peter Mah, community and business relations, Springhill Farms on Thursday. Mah said, “Springhill was pleased to accept this award on behalf of the communities of Neepawa, Gladstone and Minnedosa and all the community partners that have welcomed and supported our new Springhill workers.”