Canada invests over $1.5 million in cheese processor
The investment allows for increased production, reduced environmental footprint
2 June 2022
2 minute read
Canadian minister of agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau announced yesterday an investment of $1,577,028 to Fromagerie La Chaudière in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, under the Dairy Processing Investment Fund. The funding will help the locally-owned cheese processor increase production by 25% while reducing its environmental footprint.
Fromagerie La Chaudière produces a wide range of fresh and aged cheeses, processed cheese, organic cheeses and butter for sale. The investment allowed the company to install an automated production line to respond to consumer demand for its firm unripened cheese twists called Déguédine. The increase in the plant's production, which now runs 24 hours a day, six days a week, created new positions in the staff of over 200.
The company also introduced a reverse osmosis water treatment technology to remove most of the water from the whey that is a by-product of cheese production. Before the technology was introduced this past January, Fromagerie la Chaudière was using 25 trucks a week to transport the whey to another processor. The company now transports the concentrated whey with just one truck a day, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and cutting transportation costs.
"Our family business is an important economic driver for the Mégantic region and a flagship for the dairy processing industry in Quebec. These investments have helped us continue to grow while reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 75 per cent," said Michel Choquette, president, Fromagerie La Chaudière. "We are proud that our locally made products have national reach and we continue to work to meet growing consumer demand while minimising our environmental footprint."
