Sudbury now a hub for plant-based beverages
You may be old enough to remember the Palm Dairies plant and, later, the Beatrice plant. Today, the building at 500 Barrydowne Rd. reflects the changing nature of Canadian diets and food choices — a milk-processing facility that has been transformed.
A visible element of New Sudbury and The Kingsway since 1962, the plant is now Lactalis Canada’s first dedicated fluid facility. Renovations converted the site to a 33,150-square-foot, state-of-art plant.
“We are building our business and a thriving local economy,” said Gilles Froment, who is responsible for government and industry relations for Lactalis.
Employing directly 25 people at the site, Lactalis employs many others who are part of the supply chain, including subsidiary businesses and drivers.
“We create and support jobs here. We take great pride and responsibility in being an engaged member and active partner in the community,” said Lactalis Canada president and CEO Mark Taylor.
Plant-based products are a growing segment of the Canadian shopping cart. The company, said Taylor, is embracing innovation.
“We rebuilt this operation from the ground up," he said. "Dairy is the core of our business and we are the largest dairy company in the world. We are in 55 countries. We have 20 operations in Canada.
"In Canada, this is our first step into a fully plant-based beverage facility for the group. Why Sudbury? It is ideally located.”
Lactalis Canada held a special event to celebrate the reopening of its Sudbury site. With a symbolic tree planting to mark the event, company executives plus Sudbury MPP Jamie West, Sudbury MP Viviane Lapointe and Coun. Bill Leduc each added a shovel of mulch to the maple.
They also spoke of the value of the processing facility and joined the employee celebration and festivities.
“The fact that Lactalis has chosen Sudbury to be the supplier for all across Canada is important," Lapointe said. "The investment they have made in this plant speaks to the confidence they have in the Sudbury economy. The local team here made senior management see Sudbury as a central spot."
This property was a fully operational milk processing plant for six decades. After significant modification and expansion, it is now home to the new plant-based Enjoy! brand. The company said Enjoy! is a nutritious and delicious high-protein line of plant-based beverages already found in Sudbury grocery stores.
Enjoy! will be rolled out across the country. All versions of the beverage are unsweetened, but naturally sweet tasting. The product is gluten-free and has no added colour flavour or preservatives.
“Everyone is doing more smoothies," said Nathalie Cusson, general manager of the Fluid Division. "You want protein? Eight grams of protein are in 250 ml. Something like this has not been in the market until now. It has a creamy texture and I love it in my coffee, too.”
There may be other reasons to purchase plant-based products. In this case, Enjoy! is dedicating one per cent of annual revenue to environmental causes, including supporting sustainable processes in forestry and paper production for the packaging.
Lactalis also donates to important local causes. Significant to this day was a $10,000 donation to the Sudbury Food Bank. Dan Xilon, executive director of the Sudbury Food Bank, was delighted.
“I wasn’t expecting this," he said. "It is decisive. Every donated dollar buys $6 worth of grocery items. Lactalis has always been supporting the Food Bank ... We appreciate it. I look forward to adding Enjoy! to our offerings.”
The Local Journalism Initiative is made possible through funding from the federal government.
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Hugh Kruzel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Sudbury Star
