CHILLIWACK, B.C. — Nisshin Seifun Group on Aug. 28 announced plans to expand its Rogers Foods Ltd. flour mill in Chilliwack, B.C. Nisshin said it will be adding a second milling unit with daily capacity of 4,000 cwts of flour. When the C$36 million ($27 million) project is completed in the fall of 2017, the Chilliwack mill will have the capacity to produce 9,000 cwts of flour a day. In addition, Nisshin will be adding 110,000 bus of wheat storage and 22,000 cwts of bulk flour storage at Chilliwack. The mill was built by Nisshin in 2005, and Rogers Foods will have total daily milling capacity of 12,600 cwts when the project is completed. Both Chilliwack and Rogers’ original mill in Armstrong are located just east of Vancouver.
Nisshin said the decision to expand the Chilliwack facility was part of a May 2015 management plan “targeting self-sustained growth through strategic investments.” The company’s flour milling business, Nisshin Flour Milling Inc., is headed by Nobuki Kemmoku, president. Rogers, the fourth largest flour milling company in Canada, had expanded the Chilliwack mill by 22% in 2000, but Nisshin said a shortfall of capacity was anticipated “due to strong sales,” prompting the decision to build 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. “In addition to the two mills owned by Rogers Foods, Miller Milling, Nisshin’s U.S. subsidiary, also owns three mills in the region. With this new boost in milling capacity at the Chilliwack mill, Rogers Foods’ presence in the region will be enhanced and Nisshin will accelerate its growth strategy and elevate its business platform across North America.”
Nisshin’s U.S. flour milling business, Miller Milling Co., operates six mills with daily capacity of 94,600 cwts. Three of the six mills are located in California.
