The Rainy River Cattlemen’s Association is breaking ground this spring at the Stratton Sales Yard to add a new facility and upgrades to the existing barn.
Marcus Powlowski, member of parliament for Thunder Bay—Rainy River announced on Friday, March 19 a non-repayable loan of $830,000, which is being granted to the Rainy River Cattlemen’s Association (RRCA) for the new infrastructure at the Stratton Sales Yard. Powlowski said the upgraded facility could increase sales by 50 per cent.
“What you do is essential because we can’t live without food,” said Powlowski.
The existing structure, built in 1960, will remain in place and receive upgrades.
One of the primary limitations of the current barn is the water system. Due to it all being located above ground, the pipes freeze in the winter, limiting the number of sales dates.
A well has been drilled on site already and is being tested to see if it can accommodate the capacity needed, according to Louis Bujold, president of the RRCA.
The funds will also provide a new skid steer, a new facility to hold more cattle, and modernize the facilities to help feed and sort cattle safely and efficiently.
“We’re excited about extending our season right now,” said Kim Jo Bliss. “We’re limited on when we can host a sale, and we often have requests for earlier sales in the spring. At this time of year, people are getting short of feed. If you have some cows that are taking up some feed on your farm, it would be a great option to get rid of them.”
In 2020, the Stratton Sales Yard held six sales and sold 6,335 head for $7,288,410.87, according to the RRCA website.
Bujold said looking forward he thinks the northwestern Ontario has the capacity to expand cattle herds and the facility needs to be able to handle that growth.
The project’s estimate cost is around 1.6 million dollars, according to Bliss. Once tenders are finalized, Bujold said they will be able to give a more concrete value to the project.
By working with local associations, the hope is down the road the Stratton Sales Yard could be used to host other kinds of sales during off-season, such as horses or purebred sales, according to Bujold.
“If you don’t have a big enough facilities to do the cattle sales, then you’re restricting yourself,” said Bujold. “By redesigning with the efficiencies of the water, feed system and the way we can sort the cattle, it’ll be more efficient so you can put more numbers through. And then it allows for you to have those other options.”
The endeavour to upgrade the facility started after the fire on September 23, 2019. Bujold said the RRCA was forced to make a decisions on the future of the Stratton Sales Yard and ultimately said the board agreed it was worth the investment.
The history of the barn resonates with Bliss as her great grandfather played a role in the building of the barn.
“Louis and all of us on the board have kind of similar stories, that we’ve been a part of this barn for longer than we’ve realized,” said Bliss. “I keep thinking to myself about the challenges that we’ve had in planning and building this and what it was like for them in 1960. I don’t know if we should complain so much. They were sawing their own lumber and we’re complaining about the price of lumber.”
Construction will not impact the upcoming sales dates of April 24 and April 28. Bujold said as soon as the ground is unthawed they can begin building the new facility but upgrades on the existing barn won’t begin until after the April sales.
The new start time this year has sales starting half an hour earlier. Sales will start at 8 a.m. as per the request of the buyers.
Bujold said to stay tuned as more announcements concerning the new facility and upgrades will be made in the coming weeks.
