Federal govt. invests $12.7M in five food-related companies

Ferrero Canada, Tempo Flexible Packaging, Sheen Legend Packaging (operating as Beneco Packaging and SooPak), Summer Fresh Salads, and Casa Bonita Foods jointly receive $12.7 million from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) to improve operations.

This investment is made through the Jobs and Growth Fund and the Business Scale-up and Productivity stream. The investment will help these companies enhance their technologies and increase production, which will lead to the creation of over 180 jobs across southern Ontario.

Ferrero Canada, a manufacturer of chocolate and confectionery products that operates out of an over 1 million-sf manufacturing and processing facility in Brantford, Ont., is receiving a $5-million investment to increase capacity and automation of Ferrero Rocher and Nutella & Go production lines.

Tempo Flexible Packaging, Innisfil, Ont., is a woman-owned manufacturer of flexible packaging products for the food industry and a signatory partner to the Canada Plastics Pact. With a $3.5-million investment, Tempo will expand its facility by 10,000 sf to adopt new advanced manufacturing technology and increase production of its recyclable food packaging.

Sheen Legend Packaging is a woman-led packaging company for the food and beverage industry. With a $2.5-million investment, Sheen Legend will expand production of environmentally friendly and bio-degradable plant-based manufacturing materials at its new Cobourg, Ont., facility.

Summer Fresh Salads is a woman-owned and led, manufacturer of salads, hummus and dips for major retailers and food service companies across North America. With a $1-million investment, the company will adopt new technologies and expand its Woodbridge-facility by 80,000 sf to establish new production lines.

Casa Bonita Foods produces Mexican-style soft corn tortillas and chips for retailers across Canada and the U.S. With this $720,000- investment, Casa Bonita Foods will acquire new equipment to automate and commercialize its production and packaging lines, supporting additional product development, including protein added super-foods.