Nishin Seifun Group Plans $27 Million Expansion to Canadian Flour Mill

Japan’s Nishin Seifun Group is planning a major expansion to its Rogers Foods Ltd. flour mill in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada.

Upon completion of the $27 million project in 2017, a new second milling unit at the site will have a daily capacity of 4,000 cwts of flour, bringing the total daily capacity of the Chilliwack mill to 9,000 cwts, and total milling capacity for Nishin’s two Canadian sites to 12,600 cwts per day.

In addition to the increased production capacity, Nishin will also be adding 110,000 bushels of wheat storage and 22,000 cwts of storage for bulk flour.

Rogers Foods, the fourth largest flour milling company in Canada, expanded the Chilliwack site by 22% in 2000, but ‘due to strong sales’, the company decided as part of its May management plan to add a second milling unit.

“With a large population base, a wide acceptance of Japanese food culture, and a growing market for specialty flours, the West coast region is an attractive market,” Nisshin said.

Nishin began its expansion beyond Japan in the 1980s through acquisitions, joint ventures and new startups in Thailand, China, the U.S, Canada, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, and Vietnam. And in May of this year, Nishin’s Miller Milling acquired a flour mill from Cargill and ConAgra for $215 million, which was part of a required divestment by the U.S. Department of Justice prior to the two companies merging to form Ardent Mills.