Coco Bakery of Mississauga, Ont., and other Ontario food companies receive federal funding to scale up

Mississauga, Ontario – Coco Bakery of Mississauga, Ont., Metzger Meats and Al-Shamas Food Products of Mississauga, Ont., are expanding with the help of funding from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.

Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), along with Iqwinder Gaheer, Member of Parliament for Mississauga–Malton, visited Coco Bakery, a Mississauga-based French pastries manufacturer, where they met with employees and announced an investment of nearly $2.4 million towards the growth of three southern Ontario food manufacturing companies: Coco Bakery, Metzger Meats and Al-Shamas Food Products.

The funding will help the companies purchase new equipment, increase their manufacturing capacity and create 56 jobs, as a result of the following projects.

Founded in 2012, Coco Bakery Inc. is a food manufacturer of French pastries and sweet goods. This $683,000 investment, will help Coco Bakery as it expands its operations through the adoption of cutting-edge equipment, contributing to more than double its current French macaron production capacity to meet the increased demand for its products from new and existing clients in Canada and the U.S. The investment will create 20 skilled jobs in Mississauga. Coco Bakery Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Toronto-based Bond Bakery Brands Limited. BBBL is a shareholder-focused investment platform accelerating the growth of bakery companies, including Portofino Bakery Ltd., Pace Processing and Product Development, and Holy Napoli Pizza Inc.

“The investment from FedDev Ontario will help increase Coco Bakery’s capacity, thus accelerating our growth in new channels in Canada and the U.S.,” said Beth Carreon, president. “Since we are a local manufacturer, and we source many of our input materials from domestic suppliers, our growth translates to more employment for Canadians.”

Metzger Meat Products Inc., established in 1990 and incorporated in 2017,   is an innovative rural food processor of smoked and European-style cured meats. The $1.2 million investment, will support the company to increase its production capacity through the adoption of new, high-speed automated equipment to improve its dry-curing, filling and manufacturing process. This will enable the company to realize efficiencies, as well as position it to pursue new opportunities in the ready-to-cook meats market and create 21 rural skilled jobs in Hensall, Ont.

Al-Shamas Food Products Ltd. is a manufacturer of ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook halal foods. Established in 2014 and located in Mississauga, the company manufactures 60 types of halal ethnic frozen foods, including kebabs, samosas and tandoori chicken which are sold under its own and private labels in domestic and U.S. markets. The $500,000 investment will support Al-Shamas’ expansion to a new facility with the adoption of new equipment that will support its growth and modernize its manufacturing processes. This will enable the company to double its manufacturing capacity, add two new product lines for chicken nuggets and burgers, expand into new markets, and create 15 skilled jobs in Mississauga.