• 1960s - Humble Beginnings

    The story of Väderstad begins in 1962 at Rune and Siw Stark’s 30-hectare farm, Herrgården near Väderstad. The young family had four children whom later all became involved in the business.

    Rune Stark used a rigid tine harrow to till the soil just like all the other farmers around. These had always been made of wood and for obvious reasons their durability was limited.

    Rune Stark grew tired of making a new wooden rigid tine harrow at the start of every season and spent his nights visioning one in steel. No sooner said than done. Rune Stark designed and built a rigid tine harrow using the experience he had gained from many years of farming.

  • 1970s - The Business Takes Off

    The 70s came to be a successful period of time and the turnover grew from 5 - to almost 25 million Swedish crowns. In 1972, Rune Starks Mekaniska Workshop changed its name to Väderstad-Verken AB. By this stage, the firm was already known throughout all of Sweden as a manufacturer of rigid tine harrows and cultivators.

    In 1972 the company employed 20 people and despite building extensions totalling 400 square metres, the company quickly outgrew its premises. A plot of land for a new factory was bought and the location remains the same to this day.

     

  • 1980s - Scandinavia's most successful cultivator

    Crister Stark had a clear vision of what the cultivator should look like and in 1982 the NZ-cultivator came out. The new product turned out to be Scandinavia’s most successful cultivator ever.

    However, there was no shortage of sceptics. A cultivator with fixed axles “could have difficulty getting farmers interested” thought one or two. Specially designed tines would give the cultivator a superior effect. Crister never gave up believing in the product and said to wondering farmers “Now you can work with the correct tine angle all the time".

    A hectic period began. After discussions with experienced farmers, it was very clear that the Väderstad seed drill should have discs. Rubber shock absorption seemed sensible since the machine had to cope with stones. The whole drilling area had to be evenly recompressed.

    The machine should not have any wheels outside its working width. The concepts for section after section fell into place and a first prototype was built. A seed feed system was bought from and off it went for a first trial drilling in Skåne.

  • 1990s - The Rapid Era

    In 1990 the company had just over 125 employees. It started off rough economically but throughout the decade economic conditions improved and times got better.

    In the middle of the 1990s recruitment increased by 200 and ended up being around 300.

    During the 1990s, Väderstad has greatly increased its volume in Sweden, while the international markets have expanded even more quickly. Seed drills were responsible for half the sales volume in Sweden, rollers and cultivators the rest. “Soil tillage and drilling are to an ever greater degree being carried out in a single operation and with a single machine. That is a part of our concept and good business for the farmer”, says Bo Stark, who is responsible for Väderstad-Verken’s sales in Scandinavia.

  • 2000s - An era of geographical expansion

    By the end of 2006, Väderstad acquired 49 per cent of the Canadian company Seed Hawk, manufacturer of leading technology in direct seeding. Väderstad carries the responsibility for marketing outside North America with the exception for a few states in Canada.

    As early as in spring 2007, the first Seed Hawk machines arrived in Australia, Ukraine and Russia. With Seed Hawk in the programme, the Väderstad product family expanded considerably. Väderstad now has a wide portfolio of cultivation and seeding equipment, suitable for all tillage techniques from no-till seeding to conventional tillage.The enhanced product range meets the needs for smaller growers, as well as the largest broad acre businesses.

  • 2010 until present day - Investing in the future

    The period from 2010 to present date is an era which involved expansion of production, acquisition of the Canadian company Seed Hawk, and the development and launch of the Tempo precision seed drill. 

    As the demands for precision, and the need for simulations and testing increases Väderstad opened up a newly built modern seed lab in 2016. The new seed lab offers the possibility to recreate different environments and simulated field conditions, with a varied affect from workloads, heat, cold, air pressure and so on. Moreover there are rigs for durability and extensive quality testing.