Industry

The agricultural industry remains the foundation of the local economy. But other industries have long-term connections with Carrot River.

There has always been a forest industry in the Carrot River community since the area was settled.  This has played a major role in the development of the economy of the entire northeast.

On January 03, 2012, C & C Wood Products Ltd. of Quesnel, B.C. restarted the planermill in Carrot River. The facility had been purchased in 2009 from Weyerhaeuser.  The plant has not operated since 2007.

The plant has been named Edgewood Forest Products, a division of C & C Wood Products Ltd.  As of March 2012, the mill is running at half capacity with one 12 hour shift.  Market conditions will dictate when a second shift may be added.  The sawmill which employs 35 presently, produces 180,000 board feet on one shift.  Metric products are now being produced for shipment to the Middle East and China.

Telephone  (306-768-3030)

Premier Horticulture Inc.

World demand for horticultural peat moss from Carrot River continues to grow. The very high quality of the material makes it a unique resource.

The main bog where the peat moss is harvested is 40 kms north of Carrot River.  The summer of 2009,  Premier opened another bog 40 kms south of Carrot River in the Peesane area.  The material is vacuumed up and loaded into trucks to be delivered to the processing plant in Carrot River. The processing includes drying the material, and compressing it into 3.8 cubic feet bags.  Premier Horticulture Inc. is now packaging and shipping nearly 2 million bales each year to markets throughout Canada, the United States and Asia.  Forestry nurseries in British Columbia, mushroom growers on the West Coast  and thousands of mix plant and greenhouse operations across North America use Carrot River's sphagnum peat moss.

The increase in production has also meant a corresponding increase in employment, nearly doubling in recent years. Approximately 70 people are employed by this industry. Premier Horticultural Inc. peat moss is another value-added Saskatchewan product, which provides both direct and indirect economic benefits.

Through 2009 and 2011, the Town of Carrot River has been actively involved as a partner with Premier Horticulture Inc. to develop an access route to a 5,000 acre sphagnum peat moss bog site located 30 kilometres north of the Town of Hudson Bay.  This new resource site could provide 70-100 years of peat resource to the processing plant located in Carrot River.  Getting the new resource site online will have many benefits including:  increased employment in harvesting, processing and trucking; allow Premier to expand and diversify product lines; provide very long-term industry stability which sustains population and tax base for local governments.

Between March 2009 and December 2011, $6.6 Million was spent to design and build a 22 kilometre roadway between Hwy 9 and the new bog site.  Enterprise Saskatchewan and Western Economic Diversification have funded the project.  Premier Tech Horticulture is now planning the final phase of the project to gain access to the new peat bog resource site.  A small bridge over the Pasquia River will complete the access route project.   Premier Tech Horticulture anticipates site development on the new site in 2013 and potential harvesting operation to begin in 2014.

Premier Tech Horticulture expanded its processing plant in Carrot River in 2010 with a $2.2 Million expansion.  The company is now able to package bales 4'x4'x8', suitable for more efficient container shipping.  The expansion created new employment at the processing facility.


Telephone (306-768-2794) Fax (306-768-3848)
Email  joanne.bernesky@premierhort.com

Mazurek Industries Ltd.

Mazurek Industries Ltd., is a welding and machine shop that does fabrication as well as repair work. With 5 lathes, 3 milling machines, shaper, radial and column drills, and 160-ton press, they offer a complete machine shop service. They do portable welding as well as drive shaft and PTO repairs, hydraulic cylinder repairs and have a portable boring bar. They also carry a large inventory of bearings, seals, pulleys, sprockets, bolts, steel, aluminum, specialty barstock and other parts. Over the years, the building has had two additions making it almost triple the size it started. In 2000 the business celebrated their 25^th year of servicing Carrot River and surrounding areas. With 110 combined years of experience in the field, they can accommodate any work requests without problems.  

Kevin Mazurek  - President
Ray Mazurek - Vice-President

173 Birch Road
Box 268
Carrot River, Saskatchewan
S0E 0L0

Telephone (306-768-2588)   Fax (306-768-2248)

Website http://mazurekindustries.com

Email  mazurek.ind@sasktel.net