Support will improve production and safety measures in provincial abattoirs
May 3, 2021 - Toronto, Ontario - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
The governments of Canada and Ontario are investing more than $7 million to quickly increase production and efficiency in meat processing plants across the province. This initiative will help to address supply chain disruptions through the purchase and installation of equipment, such as coolers and freezers, and their associated costs.
Through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (the Partnership), 74 projects are receiving cost-share funding to purchase or upgrade equipment that will improve production and safety measures in free-standing meat plants and abattoirs in Ontario. The program is focused on measures that could quickly increase processing capacity as the industry deals with a shortage of processing capacity, partly related to COVID slowdowns.
The $7 million funding is part of both governments' investments to assist Ontario's agri-food sector in meeting challenges related to COVID-19. Due to high demand, an additional $3.2 million was added to the original $4 million allocation to fund eligible applications. Some examples of the projects supported through this Initiative include:
- Purchase and installation of machinery including temperature sensors, bench scales, waterproof industrial screen and labeling that will increase overall productivity.
- Converting a regular freezer into a blast freezer that will increase productivity and food safety by allowing the freezing of product at a faster rate than a traditional freezer.
- Purchase and installation of vacuum packaging equipment that will increase the efficiency and speed of processing meat.
Since June 2018, both the federal and provincial governments have committed cost-share support to approximately 4,400 projects through the Partnership to help eligible Ontario farmers, processors, businesses and sector organizations innovate and grow.
Quotes
"Investing in strategic upgrades across the meat processing sector will help strengthen Ontario's capacity to continue to produce safe, high quality food. This funding will support a stable meat supply and keep high-quality and affordable Canadian meat products on our grocery store shelves and kitchen tables."
- The Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
"COVID made it more difficult for our farmers to find the processing capacity that they needed; these investments are part of our rapid response to help both our farmers and our processing industry to succeed in these challenging times. Today's announcement is the latest step our government is taking to support the sector to improve productivity and food safety to help keep Ontario's food supply system strong."
- The Honourable Ernie Hardeman, Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
"Ontario's meat processors have made significant investments to maintain production capacity and keep their employees safe throughout the pandemic. This funding will help us make further improvements to ensure a stable food supply for our province beyond the pandemic, providing farmers with market access and will connect Ontario consumers with local food. We thank the Government of Ontario for supporting the sector at this crucial time."
- Carol Goriup, President of Meat and Poultry Ontario
Quick facts
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This project is being funded under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a five-year, $3-billion commitment by Canada's federal, provincial and territorial governments that supports Canada's agri-food and agri-products sectors. This includes a $2 billion commitment that is cost-shared 60 per cent federally and 40 per cent provincially/territorially for programs that are designed and delivered by provinces and territories.
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There are 480 provincially licensed and 230 federally licensed facilities (abattoirs and free-standing meat plants) in Ontario.
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The Ontario agri-food sector supports more than 860,000 jobs in Ontario and contributes more than $47.3 billion each year to the province's economy.
