Industry Sectors in Manitoba: Diverse, Dynamic & Energetic

Food Processing (Value-Added)

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Sector Highlights
Capabilities
Competitive Strengths
Trends
Key Players
Related Links
Contacts

Sector Structure

Size: Processed food and beverages accounted for manufacturing shipments of approximately $4.0 billion in 2006. Employment in the sector is estimated at approximately 10,300.

Dominant Activities: Principal manufacturing shipments include: meat products, dairy, flour and feed, poultry, other processed food and beverages.

Exports: Manitoba exports constitute 27% of total provincial food processing shipments with primary markets being the United States (65%), Japan (21%), Mexico (4%) and Australia (3%). Principal exports include pork and pork products, potatoes, canola oil, honey, malt, and eggs.

Structure & Concentration:

The industry is comprised of 200 food and beverage manufacturers. Most are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The largest firms are multinationals in the meat, frozen french fry, vegetable oil and baking sectors.
The principal industry organization is the Manitoba Food Processors Association (MFPA), whose activities focus on education and training, domestic and export marketing.
The industry is supported by a comprehensive network of public and private R&D facilities.

Highlights

The value-added food processing sector is the largest manufacturing sector in Manitoba, representing 28% of total provincial manufacturing shipments.
The province is recognized internationally for the quality of its pork, and is home to four modern, federally-inspected, high-throughput hog processing plants.
Manitoba is home to the largest value-added processing plant of eggs in Canada, and Manitoba egg processors boast some of the most advanced products and technology in North America.
The province is home to three world-class potato processing operations that produce frozen products for international markets.

Sector Capabilities

Meat processing: Pork, Beef & Poultry
Egg processing
Fruits & Vegetables: processed, frozen, canned & preserved, ready-to-eat
Confectionery products & snack foods
Brewing/Distilling, Beverages
Nutraceuticals & functional foods
Dairy: Cheese, Ice Cream
Milling and commercial baking
Other: Pasta, perogies, luncheon meats, gourmet meats
Honey
Vegetable Oils

Competitive Strengths

Highly Productive Agricultural Resource Base — With more than 7.7 million hectares (19 million acres) presently used for crop and livestock production, Manitoba annually accounts for 10% of Canada's primary agricultural production.
Variety of Raw Materials Supply — Manitoba's soils and climatic conditions are ideally suited for the production of a wide range of crops including cereals, oilseeds, pulses and horticultural crops.
Low factor costs — The food processing industry benefits from low cost, high-quality raw materials (agricultural products), a stable workforce, and the lowest energy costs in North America.
Research & Development Infrastructure — The Manitoba industry is supported by the following research infrastructure, which has capabilities for improved crop development, new food product development, regulatory compliance testing, and process development (including pilot plant facilities):
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's Research Centres (Brandon, Winnipeg and Morden)
  www.agr.gc.ca/science/winnipeg
- Food Development Centre
  www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/fdc/index.html
- Canadian International Grain Institute
  www.cigi.ca
- University of Manitoba's Faculties of Agricultural and Food Sciences, and Human Ecology
  www.umanitoba.ca/afs/food_sciences/
- Canada-Manitoba Crop Diversification Centre
  www.agr.gc.ca/pfra/mcdc/mcdc_e.html
- Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Medicine
  www.sbrc.ca/ncarm/
- Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, www.umanitoba.ca/research/rcffn/
- Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre
  www.cmbtc.com
- Canadian Grain Commission, Grain Research Laboratory
  www.grainscanada.gc.ca/Grl/grl-e.htm

Trends

Considerable industry interest is being directed toward growing national and export markets for nutraceuticals and functional foods. Industry efforts to respond to market opportunities are complemented by research into the relationship between agricultural products and health, which is conducted at the Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Medicine and the Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals.

Key Players

Contact Info

Manitoba Competitiveness, Training and Trade
Tel: 204-945-2475
Fax: 204-945-3977

Manitoba Food Processors Association
Unit 12 - 59 Scurfield Blvd,
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3Y 1V2
Tel: 204-982-MFPA (6372)
Fax: 204-632-5143
E-mail: mfpa@mfpa.mb.ca