In honour of International Women’s Day on March 8, Saputo is celebrating its commitment to fostering a more inclusive workplace. With women still underrepresented across the sector, the dairy processor is setting a high bar for global programs that encourage everyone to feel a true sense of belonging.

• CANADA: Saputo’s Canadian division strives to equip women with the tools they need to reach their full potential through development programs, leadership mentoring, and partnerships with women-led organizations like The A-Effect. The outcome? Female representation at manager and director levels is rising year after year!

• USA: In the USA, Saputo has forged a strong partnership with the International Dairy Foods Association, which hosts Women in Dairy mentoring circles. This initiative provides women with the opportunity to join a network of peers in the dairy industry to express themselves, share insights, and build connections.

• ARGENTINA: Saputo’s Argentina division is dedicated to creating a balanced workplace where women can thrive, as demonstrated by its ambitious gender targets, comprehensive sponsorship programs, and unconscious bias trainings.

• UK: In 2022, Saputo’s UK division launched the Accelerating Female Leaders program to support women at junior and mid-manager levels in advancing their careers. But that’s just the beginning! The division is also developing female-led forums to continue building a welcoming community for women.

• AUSTRALIA: From touting the importance of gender representation at key forums to ensuring women are represented in at least half of all shortlisted roles, Saputo’s Australian division strives to raise the profile of female talent. The results speak for themselves: the division continues to meet its target of 40% female representation at VP level and above.

These efforts underscore Saputo’s commitment to gender equity—not just on International Women’s Day, but every day. By investing in women, the dairy processor is shaping a more inclusive future for the dairy industry worldwide.

[Regina, SK] – The National Circle for Indigenous Agriculture and Food (NCIAF) firmly opposes the unjustified trade barriers imposed by the United States, which threaten Indigenous agriculture, agri-food businesses, and the broader principles of fair and equitable trade.

Indigenous Peoples have engaged in trade and commerce since time immemorial, long before international borders divided Turtle Island. Our trade networks have sustained nations, economies, and food systems, and we continue to adapt and advocate for economic sovereignty in the face of new challenges.

Since its conception, the NCIAF has been actively working to support Indigenous agricultural and agri-food businesses by:

• Collaborating with Indigenous leaders across the country to ensure Indigenous perspectives are represented in key policy discussions.
• Pushing for prioritization of Indigenous procurement at all levels of government to create stronger domestic markets for Indigenous agricultural products.
• Working with industry and government leaders to ensure Indigenous producers remain competitive and are not disproportionately impacted by trade disruptions.
• Advocating for the removal of interprovincial trade barriers restricting free movement of Indigenous agricultural goods within Canada, which further impedes the growth of Indigenous businesses.

At the NCIAF, we are committed to advancing reconciliation within the agriculture industry while fostering a national dialogue on Indigenous agriculture. Our focus is on strengthening food security and sovereignty while enhancing Indigenous roles in global food provision. As we continue to support our Indigenous entrepreneurs, business owners, and agri-food businesses, we strive to provide access to support programs, ensuring Indigenous agriculture and agri-food businesses can access government and industry-led programs designed to mitigate trade disruptions.

The NCIAF remains steadfast in protecting Indigenous food systems, supporting agricultural entrepreneurship, and advocating for equitable trade policies that recognize the inherent rights of Indigenous producers. We encourage Indigenous agribusinesses to stay connected, share their concerns, and access the resources we are developing.

Together, we will continue to strengthen our food sovereignty and economic resilience.

Natural Products Canada (NPC) has announced investment of $1.7 million into seven early-stage companies bringing its total to $10.6M in investments in 88 Canadian opportunities. The seven companies are recipients of NPC’s Commercialization Programs and represent highly innovative bio-based and natural products.

NPC’s most recent investment will enable a total of $4.6 million in pivotal activities to help the seven companies address key challenges in their go-to-market journey. The recipients include start-ups from across the country developing sustainable, bio-based products ranging from allergen-free pet food to soil and water remediation and are comprised of: ALT-PRO Advantage; BioSun Products; Black & Blue Foods; Chinova Bioworks; Henri Nutrition; Magna Engineering; and Tersa Earth Innovations.

“NPC’s contribution to these companies is an investment in a stronger Canada,” said Shelley King, CEO, Natural Products Canada. “The work we do to develop and de-risk these opportunities ensures Canada can meet the demand for innovative, bio-based solutions that address global challenges such as climate change, food security, and chronic health issues.”

With today’s announcement, NPC has disbursed over $10.6 million to 88 companies, facilitating their growth and development through new product launches, increased revenues and additional capital. As of March 31, 2024, NPC-supported companies had attracted $53 for every $1 received from NPC. Thirteen of those companies were part of NPC’s initial investment fund, which led to the creation of the private investment fund, Nàdarra Ventures, further strengthening made-in-Canada innovation.

“With growing interest in bio-based solutions, Canadian companies are creating cutting-edge products that can solve problems across multiple sectors like healthcare, agriculture, energy, and manufacturing. Our government is proud to partner with NPC to help the next wave of biotech start-ups scale up and thrive. With NPC’s support, these companies are attracting private investment and driving innovation across the country.”

– The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.”

NPC’s Commercialization Programs are designed to accelerate the path to market, which can be more time-consuming and resource-intensive for deep tech, high-innovation companies within the bioeconomy. NPC focuses on three areas that are conducive to companies attracting the partners and investors required for growth: product validation and scaling, talent, and competitive strategy. The Proof of Concept, Access to Talent, and Fast Track to Financing programs address each of these gaps and provide up to $350,000 in support. Building on its capital expertise and acting as a “strategic angel” NPC works with applicants before, during and after the official application process, providing in-depth advice, guidance and connections to resources from within its network of over 4000 investors, industry leaders, experts and others.

For more information about the clients and their technologies, or to explore opportunities to collaborate with Natural Products Canada, please contact Sue Coueslan at sue@naturalproductscanada.com.

March 4, 2025 (OTTAWA) - On behalf of Food and Beverage Canada, Food and Beverage Ontario, Food & Beverage Manitoba, Conseil de la transformation alimentaire du Québec (CTAQ), Food & Beverage Atlantic, BC Food & Beverage and the Alberta Food Processors Association, we are highlighting on deep concern regarding the impact of newly imposed U.S. tariffs on Canadian food and beverage manufacturers.

We appreciate the federal and provincial governments’ advocacy and leadership to date in protecting Canada’s interests in the face of the changing relationship with the U.S. As Canada’s food and beverage manufacturing industry plays a critical role in our national economy – representing the largest manufacturing sector by employment and a significant contributor to GDP – such tariffs will have far-reaching consequences for workers, businesses, and consumers across the country.

The U.S. is a key trading partner for our industry, with billions in exports and essential imports supporting our supply chains. To safeguard Canada’s economic interests and protect our food and beverage manufacturing industry as much as possible from the negative impacts of these tariffs, we urge continued efforts towards a strong, coordinated, and strategic response, including:

• Diplomatic and Trade Measures: With tariffs now in place, it is critical to escalate diplomatic efforts to de-escalate trade tensions while also preparing to defend Canadian producers, businesses, and jobs.

• A Unified Team Canada Strategy: A collaborative approach between all levels of government, industry stakeholders, and trade partners to ensure a comprehensive response that prioritizes Canada’s economic interests – in particular, jobs and workers.

• Strategic Tariff Response: Implementing reciprocal tariffs on finished U.S. goods – final, ready-for-sale food and beverage products - rather than essential inputs to protect Canadian manufacturers while minimizing disruptions to supply chains.

• Strengthening Industry Competitiveness: Reducing interprovincial trade barriers to enhance efficiency and support domestic food production, expanding incentives for automation, modernization and production capacity specific to food and beverage manufacturing to ensure the long-term resilience of the industry, introducing Buy-Canadian campaigns to shore up sales for Canadian businesses, and addressing regulatory burdens that limit the competitiveness of Canadian food and beverage manufacturers in both domestic and global markets.

• Support for Affected Businesses and Workers: Providing financial relief measures for food and beverage manufacturers to help them minimize impacts on workers and maintain food production and implementing remission orders to ensure continued access to critical food ingredients, packaging, and processing inputs necessary for the manufacturing of food and beverage.

“This is a moment for Canada to show leadership and stand firm against unfair trade practices,” said Kristina Farrell, CEO of Food and Beverage Canada. “We must act swiftly to protect our industry and the communities that depend on it.”

“While the US descends into protectionism and tries to create a wall around its borders, let us pursue a more noble agenda,” says Michael Mikulak, executive director, Food & Beverage Manitoba. “We are and always have been a nation that celebrates diversity as strength. We are over-indexed on US exports, and while our supply chains are deeply integrated, we need to invest in export infrastructure, fix our ports, and support our companies as they seek trading partners who understand that trade is not a zero-sum game. The world wants what we have, so let’s get out there.”

Food and Beverage Canada, alongside the six provincial and regional food and beverage manufacturing associations, are proud to represent companies with manufacturing here in Canada. We stand ready to work with the federal and provincial government in standing up for Canada and implementing solutions that will protect Canada’s food and beverage manufacturing industry.