Agrifood Processing Fact Sheet
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The agrifood processing sector in the Quebec City region is a key economic driver thanks to innovative entrepreneurs. It has over 130 companies employing 5,700 people and generating $1.13 billion in annual sales. The region is a center for food and nutrition research and development due to its many research centers and educational institutions, stimulating growth in the functional food and health food sectors.
Agrifood Processing Fact Sheet
- 1. AGRIFOOD PROCESSING IS A KEY ECONOMIC GROWTH DRIVER IN THE QUEBEC CITY REGION. THANKS TO THE INGENUITY OF ITS ENTREPRENEURS, THE STATE-OF-THE-ART SECTOR HAS CARVED OUT AN ENVIABLE POSITION IN THE QUEBEC, NORTH AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN MARKETS. Home to a large number of research centres and educational institutions, the Quebec City region is a hotbed for food and nutrition innovation. This stimulates the growth of companies that go on to become leaders in the functional foods or health food sector. In 2009, the Canadian health food market was valued at CAD $2 billion, with the province of Quebec accounting for nearly 20%. In the US, this market is valued at over US $30 billion. BEVERAGES HEALTH DRINKS BAKERY PASTRY ORGANIC FRUITS ORGANIC VEGETABLES OILS CANDY CHOCOLATE SNACKS FISH DAIRY PRODUCTS GOURMET CHEESES MEATS DELI MEATS ORGANIC PORK AGRIFOOD PROCESSING FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY IN THE QUEBEC CITY REGION 130companies 5700jobs $1.13billion in annual sales 8.5% 13research centres, chairs, groups and institutes 290researchers (137 in research centres and 153 in corporate settings) Data compiled for the Quebec City census metropolitan area (CMA) by Québec International. Average annual growth:
- 2. SEEING RED WITHOUT GMOS! Every year, Maison Bergevin processes approximately 6 million pounds of cranberries, blueberries and currants into top-of-the line, 100%-natural products without additives or artificial colours. Renowned for the quality of its products, the company exports 95% of its annual production to countries around the world. BISCUITS LECLERC AVAILABLE ON FOUR CONTINENTS Founded as a family business in Quebec City in 1905, Biscuits Leclerc now operates five ultra-modern production facilities. The company’s annual output is impressive: 800 million cookies, 600 million snack bars and 5 million kilos of cereals distributed to four continents! Most Biscuits Leclerc products contain no trans or saturated fats. Recently, the R&D team took full advantage of the recognized properties of ingredients such as green tea extract, cranberries and prebiotic food fibre to develop the Praeventia line of food products. FOODS OF TOMORROW The Nutraceutical and Functional Food Institute (INAF) advances knowledge of human dietary requirements and their health repercussions. The INAF’s biochemists, food engineers, nutritionists, doctors and pharmacologists support the development of effective and safe food products with a view to improving health and preventing chronic diseases. The INAF is the leading research group in Canada dedicated exclusively to studying interactions between foods, their components, nutrition and health. www.inaf.ulaval.ca MAJOR PLAYERS Dr. Jean-Pierre Després maintains that bad dietary habits are one of the main causes of Type 2 diabetes, a disease that is currently ravaging the population. As director of cardiology research at the Research Centre of the Quebec City University Institute of Cardiology and Pneumology, Dr. Després has been leading a valiant fight against obesity for several years. www.criucpq.ulaval.ca The TransBIOtech biotechnology technology transfer centre supports business innovation by providing access to leading expertise in the functional food, nutraceutical and natural health product sectors. www.tbt.qc.ca Ag-Bio Centre provides incubator services to new agribiotechnology entrepreneurs. www.agbiocentre.com WINNING ON WORLD MARKETS Two Quebec City brands have carved out an enviable position in markets otherwise dominated by major US firms. Krispy Kernels holds 80% of the nuts and dried fruit market in Eastern Canada and exports its products as far away as South Korea. With a 3% share of a market dominated by US giants, Yum Yum is equally impressive. The success of Krispy Kernels and Yum Yum also reflects their innovativeness. For example, in 2004, Yum Yum became the first Canadian producer of potato chips made entirely from natural ingredients when it launched its new line Viva. FROM LAB TO PLATE! Founded in 1989 in Portneuf, Serres du Saint-Laurent Inc. has 350 employees and produces more than 220 tons of tomatoes every week! All year round, their tomatoes (marketed under the Savoura brand) are cultivated in seven production centres, including one in Mexico serving the southeast US. The environmentally proactive company has built a biogas-heated plant and uses a photosynthetic lighting technique developed at Laval University. This innovative technique has also been adopted in Scandinavia, the US, France and Belgium. TRAINING AND LABOUR The Quebec City region’s food processing industry has access to a pool of 3,200 post-secondary graduates. Some 46% of its workers graduated from Laval University’s Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, which offers 36 programs at the bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels, including a specialized food science and technology program that is available only in Quebec. The Faculty is also home to the Agrifood Economy Research Centre, in addition to the Economic Intelligence Cell, which is a prime source of information on the legal and economic environment of the Quebec food processing sector’s partner countries. BEVERAGES AND HEALTH DRINKS – LABATT BREWERIES, SLOW COW DRINK, SOYLUTIONS, VIRAGE SANTÉ BAKERY AND PASTRY – BISCUITS LECLERC, MULTI-MARQUES CANDY AND CHOCOLATE – NUTRIART, LAURA SECORD, VIGNEAULT CHOCOLATIER, RUCHERS PROMIEL ORGANIC FRUITS AND VEGETABLES – FRUITSYMBIOSE, MAISON BERGEVIN, SERRES DU SAINT-LAURENT (SAVOURA) OILS – MAISON ORPHÉE SNACKS – KRISPY KERNELS, YUM YUM
- 3. AWARD-WINNING CHEESES The Cendrillon Alexis de Portneuf was crowned the best cheese in the world (all categories combined) at the prestigious 2009 World Cheese Awards out of a field of 2,440 cheeses from 34 countries. La Sauvagine won the Super Gold Prize in this same competition in 2010. The famous “Bergeron flavor” conquered the judges’ taste buds back in 2008, when two of the family’s cheeses edged out 1,941 competitors at the finish line of the World Championship Cheese Contest! THE BENEFITS OF CHOCOLATE On the strength of a series of national and international awards dating back to its very first years in operation, Vigneault Chocolatier markets its certified organic and fair-trade products under the Theobroma brand at more than 1,800 points of sale across North America. Another regional star is chocolate maker Nutriart, which was recently propelled into the upper echelons when it acquired Laura Secord. The company is upfront about its plans to produce all Laura Secord choco- lates at its facility in Quebec City. Having recently upgraded its facilities as part of a $43 million project, Nutriart is all ready to go! quebecinternational.ca SYNERGY AND HEALTH FOODS The Health Food Consortium represents agrifood entrepreneurs from the Quebec City region with health food expertise. The Consortium helps to promote the region as a centre of expertise in health food production, transformation and marketing. It also facilitates business partnerships, innovation and product development. www.consortiumalimentssante.ca FISH – GRIZZLY SMOKEHOUSE DAIRY PRODUCTS AND GOURMET CHEESES – AGROPUR (NATREL), FROMAGERIE ALEXIS DE PORTNEUF (SAPUTO), FROMAGERIE BERGERON MEATS, DELI MEATS AND ORGANIC PORK – ALIMENTS BRETON, CHARCUTERIE LA TOUR EIFFEL (MC CAIN), GIBIERS CANABEC, OLYMEL, MAISON DU GIBIER
- 4. quebecinternational.ca SUCCESSATHOME ANDABROAD QUEBEC CITY: #1 IN CANADA AND THE US FOR SET-UP AND OPERATING COSTS On average, the overall costs of setting up and operating an agrifood processing company in the industry are 3.4% lower in the Quebec City region than in US cities. Source: KPMG Competitive Alternatives 2010.