Approximately $2.5 million will be invested
By Diego Flammini, Farms.com
Ottawa and Manitoba are working together as the federal government and provincial governments are investing and strengthening Manitoba’s dairy industry.
Together the two governments will invest a total of $2.5 million for the construction of a dairy processing facility in St. Boniface, Manitoba. The total cost of the facility is estimated at $50 million.
The new facility’s owner will be Parmalat Canada Inc., who employs about 139 people between St. Boniface, St. Claude and Grunthal. More jobs are expected to be created in 2017 once the facility opens, and will help the province reach its goal of a $5.5 billion per year value-added food industry by 2022.
"Manitoba is proud to support this strategic investment to maintain and secure good jobs, create opportunities for growth in the agricultural sector and benefit Manitoba’s economy,” said Ron Kostyshyn, Manitoba’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development. “This expansion is important to the future of the food processing and dairy industries in Manitoba and we are committed to seeing this project move forward.”
Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay said the investment is a good way to position Canada’s agriculture sector going forward.
"The Government of Canada is committed to supporting this country's dynamic agricultural industry, which is a key driver of jobs and economic growth,” he said. “This project is a great opportunity for governments to support private sector efforts, through Growing Forward 2, to modernize and expand the dairy processing sector in Manitoba.”
According to the Canadian Dairy Information Centre, Manitoba produced more than 327 million litres of milk in 2014, which ranked 5th among the provinces.
Dairy Farmers of Canada says the dairy industry as a whole contributes $18.9 billion to Canada’s GDP and employs about 215,000 Canadians.
Join the discussion and tell us your thoughts about Manitoba’s dairy industry receiving a $2.5 million investment. Are you encouraged by the opportunities it could open for farmers across Manitoba?