Quebec cheese processor embarks on an expansion plan

Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly, Que. – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) has announced that it will make a sizable investment in a Quebec cheese processor.

In a statement, AAFC says it will help Fromagerie Bergeron with a $3.9-million investment to install robotic equipment and further automate the production lines at the company’s Saint-Antoine-de-Tilly plant.

These improvements will help Fromagerie Bergeron market sliced, grated and different cheese sizes, in addition to raising its cheese production capacity and buying more milk from dairy producers.

Roger Bergeron, Fromagerie Bergeron’s president, says in the statement that the company is grateful for the government’s “confidence and support.”

He adds that the $3.9-million investment will allow the company to modernize its facility “to deal with strong competition and to protect jobs and products here and across the country.”

In its own statement, the cheese processor announced that it also has plans to invest $20-million in the plant to expand and modernize it.

In its announcement the company says no department will be left untouched, from reception to refrigeration.

Bergeron explains that “it’s very ambitious, very daring what we are planning to do.”  Bergeron adds that the AAFC’s contribution will focus on improving efficiency, but “at the same time, we want to develop new products. We have innovative ideas and we need other machinery” as well.

Fromagerie Bergeron is a family owned, medium-size enterprise that specializes in making Gouda-style firm cheese. The company has more than 250 employees and produces cheese seven days a week, 24-hours a day.

The company offers light cheeses, fine cheeses, ready-to-serve and fresh cheeses.

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