Pioneer expands, relocates head office

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

by SUSAN MANN

Pioneer Hi-Bred Limited is moving its head office to Mississauga from Chatham while that location will become the headquarters for the company’s newly created Eastern Canada commercial unit.

The seed company announced the creation of the two new commercial units, one for each of Eastern and Western Canada, the head office move and the officials who will lead the new units in an April 3 press release.

Kerrey Kerr-Enskat, Pioneer communication manager, says the changes are being made because “we are trying to provide the best service for our customers. Having that defined market approach allows us to get closer to our customers and to anticipate the demands of the market” along with providing the best products and service.

Pioneer, a DuPont business, will be relocating its head office to the new DuPont Canada headquarters being constructed now at Highway 401 and Mississauga Road. A number of national positions will be relocated to Mississauga. The move will begin in August.

In response to the growing global demand for increased food production, Pioneer expects to add about 4,000 positions over the next five years globally. The jobs will include agronomists, research scientists, production technicians and sales professionals.

Kerr-Enskat declined to say how many of those positions will be in Canada. “We’re not disclosing a specific number at this time mostly for competitive reasons. But we do see continued aggressive growth in not just revenue but also in the size of our workforce.”

Since 2008, Pioneer in Canada has doubled the size of its workforce to more than 400 positions from 200, the press release says.

Bryce Eger has been appointed business director for the Eastern Canada commercial unit while Greg Stokke has the same title for the Western Canada commercial unit. The units will be responsible for sales, marketing, production and research.

The Western Canadian office will be located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and will be opening in the fall. The Chatham office will have a more focused approach to the work employees are doing. “It’s directed strictly to Eastern Canada” – Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes, Kerr-Enskat says, noting that office had been supporting the entire country.

Kerr-Enskat says there hasn’t yet been a commercial unit office in Western Canada. Pioneer has research stations in the west, including one in Saskatoon where sales and marketing people are located.

DuPont recently announced a commitment to invest $10 billion in research and development and introduce 4,000 new products by the end of 2020.

Established in 1946, Pioneer Hi-Bred Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business. BF