Portuguese Food Manufacturer Chooses Kingston for Canadian Operations

KINGSTON, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Aug. 21, 2015) - The Kingston Economic Development Corporation (KEDCO) and City of Kingston are pleased to announce that executives from the Portuguese food processor Frulact Group have selected Kingston, Ontario as the home for a new North American plant and research and development facility. Frulact Group is known globally for their fruit based preparations for application in the dairy, ice-cream, beverages, and industrial pastry markets. This announcement marks Frulact's first presence in Canada.

Frulact Canada has acquired 15 acres of prime development land in the Cataraqui Estates Business Park in the city's west end. The approximately 75,000 square foot fruit preparation and processing plant is slated to break ground later this year and open in early fall 2016. The company also has an option for an additional 15 acre parcel adjacent to their purchased lot for potential future expansion.

Approximately 50 employees will be hired when the facility opens with more jobs to be added.

QUOTES

"We are very pleased to announce that we have chosen the city of Kingston, Ontario to receive our new international production plant of fruit preparations, which will serve as a platform to the Northeast American market. The capacity to attract foreign investment shown by the City of Kingston and KEDCO played a crucial role in our decision to go to Ontario, allowing us to accelerate our growth and recognition as a global company. Last but not least, I would like to extend a word of thanks to the Ambassador of Canada in Portugal, Mr. Jeffrey Marder, for his support and effort in this process, which has been a successful journey and will allow us to supply the Canadian and United Sates markets with our innovative fruit preparations."

Joao Miranda

CEO, Frulact

"Food and beverage processing plays a key role in helping grow Ontario's economy. The province has worked hard to support Frulact in their decision to make Kingston their base for North American operations, and we will continue to provide support for companies wishing to do business in our province. This new operation will help Ontario's agri-food industry continue to grow and contribute to the Premier's Agri-Food Growth Challenge of creating 120,000 new jobs by 2020. We welcome Frulact Canada to the Kingston community and look forward to their role in Ontario's food and beverage processing sector."

Jeff Leal

Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

"I am so pleased to welcome Frulact to our community and I want to thank their senior management team for choosing Kingston as their base for expansion into the Canadian market. This is a big win for our local economy. This project will bring new jobs and investment to our city, and positions Kingston as an attractive location for other businesses in the food manufacturing industry."

Bryan Paterson

Mayor, City of Kingston

"We have been working with Frulact, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the City of Kingston over the past six months to bring this exciting new opportunity to Kingston. This is a significant agri-business investment not only for Kingston but for Ontario and Canada. KEDCO worked to ensure Kingston was chosen as the preferred base for Frulact's expansion into Canada. Our role involved promoting Kingston's competitive advantages to ensure the city was shortlisted among other communities being considered, assisting with site selection and land acquisition, making introductions in the community for research, training and supply chain development. We look forward to supporting Frulact Canada throughout their building process and during recruitment of new employees for the facility. This is a great win for Kingston."

Donna Gillespie,

Acting CEO, Kingston Economic Development Corporation

ABOUT FRULACT GROUP

Frulact is a Portuguese company established in 1987 that specializes in the conceptualization, development and production of fruit based preparations for application in the food industry. The company offers custom-made fruit preparations for major players in the dairy, ice creams, pastry, and beverage industries. Frulact is currently in a leadership position in the European, Middle Eastern, and African markets.

The company operates seven industrial sites in France, Morocco, South Africa, and in Portugal where it has its most advanced state-of-the-art plant in Tortosendo and its R&D and Innovation Center in Maia, named Frutech. Frulact Group counts approximately 600 employees and consolidated turnover in 2014 totaled 110 M EUR (±155 M CAD).