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Governments Invest in Bringing Made-in-Manitoba Foods to Market

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December 8, 2021 – Winnipeg, Manitoba – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Seven Manitoba food processing companies will receive $369,500 to purchase new equipment to better meet consumer demands, improve efficiencies and create opportunities for economic growth across the province, Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development Minister Ron Kostyshyn announced today.

Funding has been provided through Growing Forward 2’s Growing Value – Commercialization program, which helps new and existing agri-processors bring foods and other agriculturally-based goods to market through product development, market research and productivity improvements.

The projects and funding received include:

• Notre Dame Creamery Ltd. in Notre Dame de Lourdes: $60,000 to purchase a butter printer, which is used to package smaller butter portions and create new flavoured products to meet market demands;
• Red River Milling Inc. in Niverville: $100,000 to add a pneumatic conveyance to its hemp processing facility, which will increase efficiency and improve food safety and quality;
• Cavalier Candies Ltd. in Winnipeg: $50,000 to purchase new equipment to wrap and seal their candies, which will increase efficiency and capacity needed to meet consumer demand;
• Ash Apiaries Ltd. in Gilbert Plains: $36,000 to develop and commercialize a line of energy beverages which will use honey as the only sweetener and a source of other nutritional benefits, as well as $50,000 to purchase equipment to put tamper-resistant seals and shrink seal labels on packages;
• Red Dog Enterprises Ltd. in Swan River: $16,000 to commercialize compounds extracted from red osier dogwood trees in human health supplements and animal feed;
• Stoney Brook Creamery in Steinbach: $15,000 to establish a micro-creamery and develop organic dairy products; and
• Winnipeg Old Country Sausage Ltd. in Winnipeg: $42,500 to upgrade their hot water, shipping, holding and cooling areas to improve efficiencies.

Government funding can represent up to half of the cost of each project, to a maximum of $100,000. In total, these projects represent an investment of more than $1 million in agri-food processing across the province. Once complete, these projects will create 19 new jobs and are expected to create another 18 jobs after three years.

Many of these projects have received assistance from Manitoba’s Food Development Centre, located in Portage la Prairie. The centre provides entrepreneurs with product development and research expertise, equipment, and industry links to transform an entrepreneur’s food and beverage product ideas into a market-ready product. Minister Kostyshyn noted Manitoba’s goal is to establish a value-added food industry worth $5 billion by 2020.

The federal and provincial governments are investing $176 million in Manitoba under Growing Forward 2, a five-year, federal-provincial-territorial policy framework to advance the agriculture industry, helping producers and processors become more innovative and competitive in world markets.

The next application deadline for Growing Value- Commercialization is January 1, 2015. Value-added agricultural industries are eligible to apply, including food processing and biofibre production companies. For more information about this program or the Food Development Centre, visit www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture.

Quotes

“Canada’s innovative food processors deliver high-quality food products to the marketplace and drive our economy. Our government is proud to support projects like these that create jobs, growth and prosperity in the agricultural sector.”

- Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz

“There are many unique processors and agri-businesses throughout Manitoba, growing, designing and selling a wide range of products. This program brings innovative products to market, creates new opportunities for existing businesses and supports the growth of our agricultural economy. Strategic investments like these create growth, new jobs and a diverse agricultural sector.”

- Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development Minister Ron Kostyshyn

“The Growing Forward 2 funding allows us to complete projects that we wouldn’t be able to pursue on our own. The idea behind the beverage project is to produce a refreshing drink that provides an energy boost using honey as the sweetener. There is currently very little honey being used in beverage manufacturing so if this drink takes off, it will be good for the honey industry as a whole.”

- Brent Ash, co-owner of Ash Apiaries

Additional links

• Growing Forward 2 (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada)
• Growing Innovation - Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative (Manitoba Agriculture Food and Rural Development)

Contacts

Jeff English
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz
613-773-1059

Media Relations
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
613-773-7972
1-866-345-7972
Follow us on Twitter: @AAFC_Canada

Caedmon Malowany
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Ron Kostyshyn
204-945-1494

Backgrounder

Notre Dame Creamery Ltd. operates in its original location, built in 1921. This family-owned company’s butter is made in small batches in a conventional butter churn. They also produce organic milk and kefir.

Red River Milling Inc. supplies nutritious hemp food products, including hulled seeds, milled hulls, toasted hemp seed and hemp coffee to other food manufacturers.

Cavalier Candies Ltd. is a family-owned confectionary manufacturer and has operated in Manitoba for more than 90 years. The jelly fruit slice candy is their specialty and is mainly sold in the United States.

Ash Apiaries Ltd. is the second-largest honey processor in Manitoba. The family-owned company has over 8,000 bee colonies and currently produces liquid honey, creamed honey and flavoured honey spreads.

Red Dog Enterprises Ltd. has been exploring the properties and potential health benefits of the red osier dogwood, a hardy shrub found in many regions of Canada, since 2011.

Stoney Brook Creamery is a new venture to process and market organic dairy products.

Winnipeg Old Country Sausage Ltd. has been processing cooked and smoked sausages on Dufferin Avenue in Winnipeg for over 100 years.