Brouwer Company Celebrates 40th Anniversary

First production Brouwer Sod Harvester on a Massey Ferguson tractor 1972. Brouwer's first sod harvester was manufactured in a shop at Brouwer Sod Farms in 1972. In 1974, the company built a factory in Keswick, Ontario — the same location where the equipment is manufactured today. Its first sod harvester sold for $9,600 complete.
Courtesy of Brouwer Company

Forty years ago, Gerry Brouwer revolutionized the way sod was harvested around the world. This year, the Brouwer Company celebrated its 40th anniversary. Brouwer's vision changed the industry from cutting sod with a Ryan sod cutter and stacking it onto pallets or trucks by hand. The new innovation was a sod harvester that cut sod, transferred it onto a conveyor, rolled it and put the rolls on a pallet — all in one operation.

Producers were able to reduce labor (by six to eight workers) when they switched from the Ryan sod cutter to the Brouwer sod harvester. In some operations, harvesters have replaced as many as 25 workers. Over the last four decades, this sod harvester has harvested millions of sod rolls and slabs worldwide, saving producers millions of dollars.

Over the years, the company has developed additional products for the turf industry, including the Hitch- Hiker truck-mounted forklift, reel mower, BV 85 turf vacuum, RM22 rotary mower, turf rollers, Rollmax 2400 24'' big roll sod harvester, 1600 self-propelled sod harvester and Rollmate sod installers. The company also invented the patented automatic big roll system now used by Bucyrus. For more information go to www.brouwerturf.com