Quebec, Quebec, April 4, 2007 The Honourable
Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Minister of Labour and Minister of
Canada Economic Development, today announced a $125,000 repayable
contribution to Grizzly Smokehouse Inc., to enable that company to
implement Phase 2 of its productivity enhancement strategy through the
acquisition of an automatic packing machine.
Located in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures,
Grizzly Smokehouse Inc.
specializes in processing fish by means of hot- and cold-smoking, including
Atlantic salmon, Pacific coho and sockeye salmon, trout, turbot and halibut.
Grizzly Smokehouse products are to be found in Quebec's main supermarket chains,
and in restaurants. The enterprise, which has 30 or so employees,
is investing $250,000 in this project, which will help eliminate bottlenecks at
crucial stages in the production process.
"Canada Economic Development's assistance enables us to guide this
enterprise in its investment and innovation efforts, which are needed in order
to meet consumer demand," stated Minister Blackburn. "It is also in line
with Canada's new government's desire to facilitate the emergence of small and
medium-sized Quebec enterprises and help them become more competitive on the
international scene."
Grizzly Smokehouse Inc.'s productivity improvement plan aims to
increase the firm's exports and enable it to be more competitive on foreign
markets. The firm's high value-added products are known for their quality and
help make Grizzly Smokehouse a benchmark in the agri-food sector.
"We are proud to have been able to count on the support and drive of
Mr Blackburn and the staff at Canada Economic Development for the
realization of Phase 2 of our automation project," stated
Pierre Fontaine, President of Grizzly Smokehouse Inc. "This
project is without doubt a turning point for our firm.
Canada Economic Development's contribution enables
Grizzly Smokehouse to meet new challenges and compete on export
markets."
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Sources:
Michel RochonCommunicationsCanada Economic DevelopmentTel.:
418-648-4679 or 1-800-463-5204E-mail: michel.rochon@dec-ced.gc.ca
Roxane MarchandPress SecretaryOffice of the Honourable Jean-Pierre
BlackburnCanada Economic
DevelopmentTel.: 819-953-5646Cell.: 613-816-5094E-mail: roxane.marchand@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca
