A business rooted in local agricultural and community traditions.
Scroll through 9 Mile Legacy Brewing’s social media platforms and you’ll see posts from around the province of beers celebrating culture and collaboration on the prairies. The Saskatoon Berries Beer and alcohol-free Barry’s Fastball Fizz commemorate Saskatoon’s Western Canadian Baseball League team. The Main Stage ’25 New Zealand Pilsner is a celebration of the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival, while the Happy Ness Pale Ale is a nod to the popular Ness Creek Music Festival. Partnerships between these art, culture and sporting events, as well as partnerships companies like Nutrien, Farm Credit Canada and the University of Saskatchewan, are just a taste of what 9 Mile Legacy has created and shared across the province.
Located in Saskatoon, 9 Mile Legacy has built more than a craft brewery. Founded in 2015 by long-time friends and entrepreneurs Shawn Moen and Garrett Pederson, 9 Mile Legacy takes its name from the nine-mile stretch of farmland that once separated their families’ homesteads. The history of neighbours working side by side is central to the company’s story today. The brewery is as much about community as it is about beer. It has become a model of how Saskatchewan businesses can grow through partnerships, government support and value-added agriculture.
For co-founder and CEO Shawn Moen, collaboration isn’t just a buzzword, it’s a way of doing business. From the beginning, the company has sought out opportunities to work with others in meaningful ways.
One of their earliest projects was a partnership with Odd Couple, an Asian Fusion restaurant that was across from 9 Mile Legacy’s 20th Street location in Saskatoon. This led to a beer called “OC Collab” designed specifically to complement key ingredients on the restaurant’s menu. It became a signature part of the Odd Couple and 9 Mile Legacy experience. What began as a single product evolved into a long-term relationship that strengthened both businesses and built community ties.
Moen believes this spirit of collaboration is part of Saskatchewan’s makeup. This mindset extends beyond brewing – it means creating value that lasts, not just completing one-off transactions.
“In order to collaborate, you need to be learning from one another and you need to be figuring out and meeting each other where your needs are, where your interests are. If you approach things from a transactional perspective, it’s not really collaboration. It has to be relational. It has to be built on something that is long-lasting for it to really endure” explains Moen.
The brewery also plays a role in one of the province’s most important growth areas of value-added agriculture. While the term sounds technical, it simply means finding new ways to transform and improve agricultural products while adding economic, social and community value along the way.
In brewing, that transformation is clear as grains become beer through fermentation, then adding in creativity and innovation. Moen sees it in broader terms, as it’s not just about profit, but about sustainability and food security. In Saskatchewan, where agriculture is foundational to the economy, companies like 9 Mile Legacy demonstrate how value-added processing can create new opportunities while staying rooted in community.
Like many small businesses, the brewery faced challenges in scaling up production while managing costs. That’s where provincial programs have made a difference. In 2019, through the Saskatchewan Lean Improvements in Manufacturing program, they were able to expand to their larger processing facility. This incentive helped alleviate the cost of capital expansion. By lowering upfront costs, the program allowed the company to grow when it otherwise might not have been possible.
Now, with the new Saskatchewan Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Investment Tax Credit, Moen sees another opportunity to build momentum. The three-year pilot offers a 45 per cent tax credit to investors in eligible Saskatchewan businesses. It’s designed to support growth in the food, beverage, machinery and transportation sectors. For breweries like 9 Mile Legacy, there’s potential to raise several million dollars to take the next step in their business.
This combination of entrepreneurial drive and government support highlights Saskatchewan’s commitment to growing a competitive and innovative food and beverage industry. For Moen, the timing couldn’t be better.
“We’re excited about the potential in terms of continuing to grow the crop brewing sector, but also some of the innovative work we’re doing … together we can achieve great things” shares Moen.
Sustainability is another cornerstone of the brewery’s approach. From the beginning, the company has prioritized sourcing local ingredients whenever possible. Their malt comes from within 100 kilometres of Saskatoon, from world-class Prairie Malt in Biggar and craft maltster Maker’s Malt in Rosthern. Their brewing equipment was purchased from suppliers in Western Canada rather than overseas. This was a decision that had a major positive impact when the pandemic disrupted global supply chains.
That commitment to ethical supply and sustainable practices reflects a larger trend in the province’s agribusiness. 9 Mile Legacy is well positioned to offer sustainably produced, ethically sourced and high-quality ingredients to meet the demand of growing global markets.
Saskatchewan’s business environment also plays a role through a stable regulatory environment, supportive government programs and its strong agricultural foundation. For entrepreneurs seeking a place to innovate and grow, the province offers both opportunity and support. This creates conditions where businesses can thrive.
For 9 Mile Legacy, the next chapter will include new collaborations, expanded production and continued contributions to Saskatchewan’s food and beverage industry. At its foundation, the brewery represents exactly what makes Saskatchewan unique: a commitment to working together and a vision for growth that looks both inward to community and gives back outward to the world.
Media Relations
Trade and Export Development
Regina
Phone: 306-526-6302
Email: media.ted@gov.sk.ca
