Funding from upper levels of government is helping to support a local agri-business.
The provincial and federal governments recently announced as much as $150,000 through the Food Safety and Growth Initiative to support Nature’s Finest Produce in Chatham-Kent.
Officials say the funding will help enhance food safety and traceability at the local agribusiness by funding the purchase of an automatic carrot bagger and an optical automatic grader. The upgrades will enable Nature’s Finest to improve production efficiency and position the business for long-term sustainable growth while protecting local jobs.
“By supporting Nature’s Finest Produce through the Food Safety and Growth Initiative, our government is taking bold steps to protect Ontario’s agri-food sector and foster prosperity in Chatham-Kent,” said Chatham-Kent-Leamington MPP and Ontario’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness Trevor Jones in a news release. “This investment will protect local agri-food jobs in the face of external threats.”
Province-wide, the Food Safety and Growth Initiative will invest up to $4.4 million across Ontario’s $51 billion agri-food industry to help eligible food processors, producers and service providers adopt new food safety and traceability equipment, technologies, and standards, while providing essential training for employees.
