Reading Time: 2 minutes The firm behind the French’s ketchup brand is bringing its bottling of the product to its own plant in southwestern Ontario. McCormick Canada, the Canadian arm of Baltimore-area condiment and spice maker McCormick and Co., on Monday announced it had completed a “multi-million dollar expansion” at its London, Ont. plant to blend, bottle and package […] Read more

McCormick brings French’s ketchup processing in-house
Club House spice maker expands London, Ont. plant

Kraft Heinz backed for ketchup production in Montreal
Company to add ketchup line at Mont Royal site
Reading Time: 2 minutes A $23.3 million expansion of Kraft Heinz’s food manufacturing complex in Montreal will see the company resume making Heinz ketchup for Canada, in Canada. The U.S.-based food processing giant and the Quebec government on Nov. 17 announced the expansion plan for the company’s Mont Royal plant, which today makes products such as KD Mac + […] Read more

Tam seeks details on Ontario’s COVID-19 farm worker guidelines
Windsor-Essex area reports six ag-related outbreaks as of Thursday
Reading Time: 3 minutes Ottawa/Toronto | Reuters — Canada’s top public health official said on Thursday she plans to seek more information from Ontario about the province’s plan to allow some COVID-19 positive people with no symptoms to return to their jobs — a risky policy, according to workers’ advocates and some doctors. Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, issued […] Read more

Grower of Zing peppers under new ownership
Reading Time: 2 minutes A major greenhouse vegetable grower in southernmost southern Ontario is expanding its reach in the region. Mucci Farms, based at Kingsville, just west of Leamington, announced Wednesday it has bought a controlling stake in Leamington-based Orangeline Farms, the grower of Zing Healthy Foods greenhouse peppers. Financial details weren’t disclosed in Mucci’s release Wednesday, but CBC […] Read more

U.S. firm launches second hostile bid for pot producer Aphria
Reading Time: 2 minutes Reuters — U.S. cannabis retailer Green Growth Brands said on Tuesday it would make a second all-stock takeover bid for Aphria, valuing the Canadian pot producer at about $2.35 billion. Several companies are looking to partner with or buy pot firms to explore opportunities in the Canadian cannabis sector after the country legalized recreational use […] Read more

Altria reported seeking stake in cannabis firm Aphria
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Marlboro maker Altria Group is in talks for a stake in Canadian cannabis producer Aphria Inc., the Globe and Mail reported on Wednesday, citing multiple sources. The details of Richmond, Virginia-based Altria’s investment are still being finalized, though it has expressed interest in buying a minority stake in Aphria with the intention of […] Read more

Mushroom grower Highline expands westward reach
Reading Time: < 1 minute Canada’s biggest mushroom grower is set to further expand its market space in Western Canada with a deal for a West Coast competitor. Highline Mushrooms of Leamington, Ont. announced Wednesday it will buy Prairie Mushrooms of Langley, B.C. for an undisclosed sum. Highline, which has operated since 1961 and was taken over in 2016 by […] Read more

Pearce: Rain expected to stall Ontario potato planting progress
Reading Time: 2 minutes Rainfall expected for much of southern Ontario is expected to narrow what’s been a relatively early planting window for Ontario’s potato growers. Two weeks ago, the reports from the Ontario Potato Board were full of warm temperatures and dry soils, and growers, particularly around Leamington and Delhi, took full advantage. One farmer in the Delhi […] Read more

Southwestern Ontario potato planting underway
Reading Time: < 1 minute Close-to-seasonal temperatures and good planting conditions across parts of southwestern Ontario have growers in the Leamington region planting potatoes. According to Eugenia Banks, a special consultant for the Ontario Potato Board, potato planting began Wednesday morning, ahead of a weather system that’s forecast to dump up to 40 mm of rain by Friday. According to […] Read more

Top Canadian mushroom grower buys westward expansion
Reading Time: 2 minutes Canada’s biggest producer of mushrooms has expanded its reach into Western Canada with the purchase of one of the region’s biggest producers. Highline Produce announced Thursday it has bought Langley, B.C.-based organic mushroom producer All Seasons Mushrooms. According to Irish tropical fruit marketing giant Fyffes, which has owned Highline since April, it will pay $59.1 […] Read more