October 21, 2026 – Ingleside, Ontario – Lactalis Canada, the Canadian dairy leader behind emblematic brands including Cracker Barrel, Black Diamond, Balderson, Astro and Lactantia, and part of France based Lactalis Group – officially opened its new Research & Development (R&D) Centre in Ingleside, Ontario, reinforcing Lactalis Canada’s continued commitment to advancing Canada’s dairy, food manufacturing and agrifood sectors.
Located adjacent to Lactalis Canada’s cheese processing plant in Ingleside, the R&D centre features advanced pilot-scale capabilities and specialized testing and evaluation spaces designed to support product and process development.
“Since 2018, Lactalis Canada has completed four strategic acquisitions and invested more than $900 million in manufacturing, distribution and transformation initiatives across the country. This new R&D centre is another example of our continued commitment to dairy and food manufacturing in Canada,” said Mark Taylor, President and CEO, Lactalis Canada. “Over these years, we have been expanding our capabilities in a number of provinces. In this instance we’re proud to anchor this innovation hub in Ingleside, building on our deep cheese expertise, strong partnerships and significant presence in Eastern Ontario.”
“By bringing new R&D capability closer to industrial manufacturing, this centre will enable teams to develop, test and refine cheese products and technologies and accelerate the journey from concept to market,” said Sandra Senez, Vice President, Research & Development, North America. “Expected to become a Lactalis Group global expertise centre for cheddar cheese, the work done here will extend far beyond Ingleside and across our broader network.”