We have an opportunity to define a Canadian food and beverage industry
Challenges bring opportunities
This is the sixth of our trends that we have published for 2026. The timing is great, because I had the opportunity to attend the FCC Future of Food and CFIN Foodtech Next events in Ottawa this week.
For a long time, our Canadian industry has been in the shadow of the U.S. industry. As we shift to develop domestic and export markets, we should showcase the benefits of Canadian food and beverage to the world. Excellent quality raw materials, rigorous food safety oversight and people who are dependable and fair to do business with could be the foundation of a Canadian reputation throughout the world. Make it very clear where your product is produced and the ingredients you are using. Take advantage of the Canada Brand program if you are exporting. Producers and processors need to participate in the conversation and help all Canadian products find a place in the market.
Our SKUFood trends are different. We focus on the entire value chain and look for insights to help you as you navigate through another year in this challenging industry. There are several sources for trends to help you understand what is happening with consumers. They are important and we encourage you to consider how they impact your target market and your products.
The opportunity is now
Canadian products are in demand at home and in many export markets. Canadian consumers have been loud and clear; they want to see products produced in Canada on the shelf. Retailers are responding. If you compete in a category where there are US products, Canadian origin and Canadian ingredients are a valuable point of differentiation. This is new in the last 18 months. Yes, people looked for local and there was a percentage of the market that would seek out and support local products. This is different. People are more interested and they will check the label. Retailers are looking at categories to ensure they have a credible Canadian presence.
International markets want Canadian products too. They might have been buying form the US and they are concerned about stability, tariffs or they just do not want to buy from there. Regardless of the reason, people around the world are looking for options.
The time is right for our industry to define what we stand for and be proud to take this message to consumers and customers. The challenge is we need to act now. We cannot wait or look at slow growth.
Showcase the benefits to the world
Canadian food and beverage are respected in so many markets. Perhaps more than it is respected at home. We need to take advantage of the reputation we have in other markets and do more to solidify our reputation at home.
Our industry starts with the inputs. We have access to incredible quality ingredients. Our focus should be on more processing capacity to utilize these ingredients. Success used to be quality commodities exported in vast quantities. Unfortunately, this is not the solution in today’s market. We need to control more of our own destiny (which means do not rely on processing in another country) and take advantage of the earnings we can generate, when we do it here.
We need to prove our ability to grow the inputs and process them into great quality products. Obviously, we do this now but the vast majority of our food and beverage exports are commodities. When we add value, customers become much more dependent on us, as opposed to ‘shopping around’ for commodities.
We complain about the regulatory environment, but we also have to appreciate it has put us in a good position. Canada does have a reputation for producing safe, quality food. We must continue to work with regulators to ensure changes are warranted and find a balance with cost of goods and complexity. One area that looks like we need some focus is packaging and recycling. The ownership and costs are being put on manufacturers, but we need to ensure this is not a blank cheque for recycling resources. Every cost we put on manufacturers ends up in the final retail price. The huge increases we hear about are just not realistic. We need better solutions and more consistency from market to market.
Canada is a great place to do business. Most of the companies here are fair to work with and they are dependable. Our culture is not built on wild swings and usually Canadian companies do what they say they will do. There are always exceptions, but in a volatile world, we should be a voice of reason and stability. This is tough to quantify but it is worth a lot. Metrics like measuring service level, free trade agreements (that are honored and not changed on a whim) and a fair price mean a lot. All Canadian businesses selling at home and internationally need to consider these attributes and how valuable they are. There is no way to police this or develop standards, but collectively if we conduct business with ethics and a focus on developing long term relationships, we should win.
We need to get better at selling
As we define our industry at home and around the world, we also need to get better at promoting and selling what we have. That does not always mean a more aggressive sell or discounting the price.
One conversation this week at the FCC Future of Food was between Dr Lenore Newman and Dominic Barton. You might remember the report he authored in 2017. Better selling starts with understanding the consumer and the customers in export markets. We need to immerse ourselves in these markets and understand the consumer. What do they want and what do they need? Our solution in the past might have been to ship maple syrup in a can with a nice image of people enjoying winter. That is something we know and cherish here at home. Not something a consumer in another market understands. Instead of trying to force maple syrup in a can on them, we need to understand how they want ‘sweet’ and determine if maple syrup can be a component or how they want to keep it in their home. Before you try to sell, you need to understand them better. This takes time so we need to get on it now. Canada should develop a reputation for understanding what they want and delivering it for them.
Shifting mindset from huge quantities of commodities to smaller volume of value added is not easy. It is not always better, but there must be opportunities out there where this can happen.
Producing food here is expensive. All of the strengths we discussed also add costs. Quality ingredients are usually more. Good, dependable labour is more expensive per hour and there are many examples of how productivity here needs to improve. The regulatory environment impacts the safe quality food discussion, but it also adds complexity and costs. Costs are also impacted by our infrastructure. I can remember standing in Rotterdam in the Netherlands and just being amazed by the cranes in the port and the activity of goods coming and going. For a small country they really have figured the logistics of moving products in and out. We need focus on this here, to reduce costs and improve our ability to service markets.
Now is the time
There is no single event or unveiling that we can point to for defining our industry at home and around the world. It needs to be a collective effort where we all must do our part. The opportunity is there, and we need to get going now.
It was great to see FCC take a real leadership role in this at the conclusion of the Future of Food event. They have launched an initiative called ‘Let’s grow Canada’. They announced $5B in funding being put into the value chain, which is a substantial sum to support growth in the sector. They have also created resources for industry to use. We all need to walk through the door that is open for us.
I do have travel coming up to Toronto Saskatoon and Guelph so if you want to connect or have an event in any of these locations give me a call or send me an email.
Peter
SKUFood Recipes for Success Podcast
In this episode of SKUFood Recipes for Success, we sit down with John Ernst, a next-generation leader from Terra Beata Farms, one of Atlantic Canada’s most recognized cranberry growers and processors. After graduating from the Smith School of Business with a passion for entrepreneurship, John stepped into the family business during a period of rapid growth and hasn’t looked back.
Over the past six years, he has played a key role in expanding Terra Beata’s reach across retail, food service, and export markets, while also contributing to acquisitions and capital projects that continue to shape the company’s future. John’s perspective blends formal business training with hands-on experience in agriculture, manufacturing, and brand development within the agri-food space.
In this conversation, we explore what it means to join a family business at a pivotal moment, how Terra Beata has evolved from a cranberry farm into a value-added food brand, and the realities of scaling operations while staying true to their roots. This episode highlights the balance between tradition and innovation, and what’s required to grow a legacy brand into its next chapter.
If you would like to be a guest send us a note. We are always working on the upcoming episodes.
$5 billion in funding announced for Canadian food and agriculture
It was exciting to be in the room this week when FCC announced $5 billion in funding for Canadian food and agriculture. This is a very significant step in defining our food and beverage industry. Access to capital can be a challenge for businesses looking to scale. For those who meet the criteria and have the capability and the desire this should be a very positive step.
More and more resources for Canadian food and beverage is very positive in challenging times.
With the focus on Canadian food and beverage we wanted to share a program we have developed with Alain Bosse, the Kilted Chef. We partner to share insights about Canadian food and beverage at conferences and events. We talk about where products come from, share insights about some hidden gems and of course Chef Alain has great tips for using the products at home. This is designed to be entertaining and engaging. Not just for food industry audiences, it works for everyone.
I do have travel coming up to Toronto and Fredericton so if you want to connect or have an event in any of these locations give me a call or send me an email.