New London plant with 1,500 jobs generates $ 1.2 billion in exceptional revenue

London is home to the largest investment in the food industry in Canada since Maple Leaf Foods unveiled its new processing plant. This will have an annual economic impact of $ 1.2 billion locally, said the Maple Leaf Foods General Manager.
The chicken producer formalized the situation Tuesday by announcing a $ 660 million investment in the city and plans to open a 1,450-job plant that will have a significant impact on the agri-food sector, said McCain.

"This represents the largest investment ever made in a single site in the history of the Canadian food industry," said McCain.

"This is a milestone, a milestone for Canada's agriculture and food sectors."

The state-of-the-art facility will be one of the world's most "efficient and technologically advanced" plants of this type, he said.

Kapil Lakhotia, chief executive of London Economic Development Corp., who worked for three years to conquer Maple Leaf, endorsed McCain's badessment of the economic impact, saying the benefits of the new facility will be felt in the whole city and the region.

"There are a number of ways to look at this, such as supply chain, direct benefits and service providers. This will require a lot of chicken production in Ontario, "said Lakhotia.

It is estimated that between 75 and 100 million birds a year will be slaughtered and packaged at the factory and then shipped to the stores. The factory will only produce fresh packaged chicken, but not cooked or prepared foods.

"Fresh poultry is the number one meat consumed by Canadians and continues to grow in popularity," said McCain, adding that 86% of buyers prepared chicken at home at least once a week.

Maple Leaf purchased the land located near Highway 401 and Highbury Avenue about a year ago. The deal was finalized by the previous Ontario Liberal government but scrutinized by the Conservatives in power.

"Maple Leaf and the McCain family have a rich history in Canada, investing in big jobs in the manufacturing sector," said Premier Doug Ford.

Mr Ford recalled that he was working for Canada Packers and that he was earning over $ 12 an hour, at the age of 16, 38 years ago.

"It was the best job, apart from this work," he told the gathering at the Fanshawe Colleges Product Validation Center on Bonder Road, where the morning press conference was being held.

Ford declined to speak to the media after the announcement.

The big winners are the 1,100 chicken farmers in Ontario, many of whom are located in southwestern Ontario, said Ed Benjamins, president of the Chicken Farmers of Ontario.

The London plant will process about one-third of the birds raised in the province.

"For the chicken industry, it's a beautiful story. This absolutely shows confidence in the industry. It's good for farmers, "he said.

"We have seen good growth, it is good news. This enhances the ability to put our product on the market. "

The London plant will consolidate work at three existing Maple Leaf mills in St. Marys, Brampton and Toronto, which will be closed. This consolidation will take place in two or three years, giving the company and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, which represents the three factories, the time to work on a transition.

"We have started discussions with the employer on what this means and how it will work," said Tim Deelstra, spokesman for the union, adding that the union and Maple Leaf Foods had "good relations".

"The schedule gives us the opportunity to work with the employer."

Workers at the St. Marys plant earn an average of $ 23 an hour and benefit from a pension and benefits plan, Deelstra said.

In total, more than 1,600 people work in the three oldest plants, and the London plant will likely generate more jobs than that, "said McCain.

"We are investing in safe jobs for the London area for decades to come," he said. "We will work with the union."

These discussions will eventually include the union representing workers at the new plant, he said.

"We are excited to be part of this great city of London and we are even more excited to be creating a world-clbad food factory of which we will all be extremely proud," said McCain.

Mayor Matt Brown, in one of his last acts as mayor – his term ends on Friday – was awarded to the LEDC and the city's industrial land strategy, which states that the city must have about 200 hectares of serviced industrial land ready to be sold to support new business, as crucial. to the announcement.

"This puts London in a competitive position to attract investment of this magnitude. . . so we have a landscaped and ready-to-use land, "said Brown.

"Our community offers world-clbad land ready for employment, with geography as our greatest strength. . . We are the agricultural center of Ontario.

Questions / Answers with Michael McCain

Michael McCain

• Appointed Chief Executive Officer, Maple Leaf Foods, 1999.
• 60 years
• He holds an MBA in Business Administration from the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University and graduated in 1979. He also attended Mount Allison University.
• Son of Wallace McCain, Family of the New Brunswick Food Empire.

Q: Why did Maple Leaf Foods choose London?

A: London is perfect for this investment. There was a lot available, well placed to build. It's in the heart of the poultry region.

Q: Will workers at the three Maple Leaf mills that are closing their doors be offered work here?

A: A lot is very important to us because we need their skills and experience to start this.

Q: Was this agreement finalized by the previous Liberal government and reviewed by Ontario Conservatives?

A: This has been negotiated with several governments over several years.

Q: Is it true that you have close ties with the city of London?

A: I graduated from Western University (1979) for a long time, I am attached to the city of London. I am one of the few people who can say that my five children are also graduates of Western. We have an attachment to this area. It's very important to us.

Q: You are also a frequent guest at Ivey, talking to students there.

A: We have an organizational and personal history with Western and Ivey Business Schools. It's important for our company. I am a frequent visitor to London and will now be more.

Q: What are some of the features of the new factory?

A: The new 640,000 square foot (60,000 square meter) plant will be one of the most efficient and technologically advanced of its kind in the world. It will incorporate a state-of-the-art process in flow design technologies and best practices in food safety and workplace and environmental sustainability. Our goal is to make this installation a zero waste facility. We invest in advanced animal welfare technologies and humane treatment.