A people-powered business

By Dave Bannister

Väderstad Industries is anything but a typical family-owned business, although those family and farming beginnings laid the solid foundation for the global agricultural powerhouse brand it has become today. Since being founded in 1962 in Sweden, Väderstad has earned an international reputation as a highend ag manufacturing company. From its humble beginnings over six decades ago, it has continually expanded, including the purchase of Seed Hawk in 2013 to establish a presence in Saskatchewan. Väderstad is now in over 40 countries and on all continents.

supply its global distribution network. They not only produce farm machinery, they conduct research and development on their own farms, ensuring continued success and product evolution.

Top Employers. This is no small feat when you consider that their Saskatchewan location in Langbank, a village with a population of 20 according to the 2021 Canadian Census, is situated over 200 km from Regina. What does Väderstad do to build and maintain high employee satisfaction? Väderstad encourages ongoing professional development and offers tuition subsidies to employees and also offers the option to apply for an unpaid educational leave of absence for professional development.

“My position has grown and changed over the four years I have been with Väderstad,” said Cathy Sweet, Director of Human Resources, North America for Väderstad. “It started with a focus on supporting the business here in Canada, but with the acquisition of the U.S. subsidiary, the role evolved into representing the North America region.” Sweet adds, “My role helps guide the business along with the other senior leaders, and we work very closely with our colleagues in Sweden to align our global business.”

Another important factor is that the company offers hybrid work options where possible and provides employees with needed computer equipment as well as home internet subsidies.

Väderstad also shares company successes with its employees through profit sharing programs.

The company has manufacturing facilities located in Sweden, Saskatchewan, and North Dakota to

Väderstad places a great deal of value on maintaining a high satisfaction level among the company’s workforce and it shows in everything they do. In 2022, Väderstad Industries Inc. was recognized as one of Saskatchewan’s

“Our employee base has grown over the last few years, so we have seen a lot of new faces and skills, but we also have a great mix of employees who have been with the company for many years,” notes Sweet. “Our workforce in Canada is very diverse, with a vast employee base and we strive to offer a great, safe place to work. Our extremely low turnover is a result of these efforts,” said Sweet. “We are looking for driven and innovative people to join our team, to be able to continually develop our business.”

The company lists employees at 265 in Saskatchewan, with the longest having been there 24 years.

“The facility is in a rural area where there is little access to restaurants. One benefit that really sets Väderstad apart is the Langbank location,” said Sweet. They provide a meal subsidy program offering discounted breakfast and lunch to employees which makes it easy for them to have cost-effective, fresh-made meals right at Väderstad. “We make approximately 700 meals a week out of the cafeteria, with a focus on ingredients from local farmers, where possible,” said Sweet.

Farms surround Väderstad’s location, about three kilometers north of the village of Langbank. It was in this part of the province that a grain farmer need was identified just over 30 years ago: Equipment that repeatedly and very precisely places seed and fertilizer. This equipment needed to seed shallow at a consistent depth, in zero-till conditions, helping to preserve ground moisture. No one was manufacturing equipment that did that, so in 1992 a company named Seed Hawk began production in a small shop. Years later, at a farm show in Western Canada, the company gained the attention of Väderstad, which shared Seed Hawk’s appreciation for innovation and efficiency. In 2006, Väderstad bought a minority stake in Seed Hawk. This agreement allowed Väderstad to enter the North American market and it saw Saskatchewan-made Seed Hawk equipment begin to be sold in Australia, Ukraine and Russia soon after. By 2013, the relationship evolved to the point that Väderstad bought Seed Hawk outright. The Seed Hawk air seeder is the dominant Väderstad product in Western Canada. Over the last five years this product has seen an increase in popularity and as a result, significant gains in market share. “The Väderstad Seed Hawk was the first to bring sectional control technology to the air seeding industry,” said Sweet. “Today we continue that competitive advantage with industry-leading features such as lifting individual shank sections out of the ground when encountering previously seeded areas of the field, a Seed Hawk exclusive feature.”

Another seeder, the Väderstad Tempo planter, was introduced to the market over 10 years ago, using pressurized air to singulate and deliver the seed into the furrow. This allows very high levels of precision at high ground speeds. “Most of the competitors in this field were using a vacuum to singulate and allow the seed to free fall to the ground,” Sweet explains.

Väderstad proudly stands behind the products they build. “The Väderstad Carrier, a high-speed disc, has a lifetime warranty against disc breakage,” notes Sweet. “No questions asked, you break it, we replace it. We can do this because we manufacture the discs ourselves in our own facility in Sweden. The steel we use to make the disc is called V55. It’s a very high standard of steel that balances hardness with wearability.”

Väderstad has Sales and Service employees spread throughout Canada that support dealers and customers from Alberta to Quebec. “While Western Canada is our primary market, you will find Väderstad Seed Hawk products all around the world, from the United States, to Australia, to Europe,” Sweet says. “In Western Canada we sell our product through a dealer network. This

Location flexibility is another key benefit to working at Väderstad. “We have our manufacturing facility around the Langbank/Whitewood area in rural Saskatchewan,” Sweet notes. “This is where many of our employees that directly support the manufacturing operations are located. The addition of the Regina office is to support our employees in the Regina area. It provides a central location to attract talent in the area that does not need to be at the Langbank site daily.” is primarily main line equipment dealers such as John Deere and CIH. In other areas of the world, we have distributors/ importers that we sell to.”

“One of the most important parts in selling equipment is being able to provide outstanding service and a robust parts network,” Sweet explains. “Working through dealers brings a partnership that ensures customer needs are at the forefront of our business.”

Väderstad has a motto, “Service and support is in our DNA.” We asked Sweet what this means in their day-to-day business. “Customer relations and support are at the core of our business,” she quickly replied. “If what we are doing on a day-to-day basis does not support this, we need to realign.” Sweet adds, “We must remember every day that the farmer is ultimately our real manager and the one who guides us in our decision making. We never leave a customer behind and always treat them with the utmost respect. It’s the Väderstad Way.”