New snack corn processor to start up in Chatham Monday, May 30, 2011 by PAT CURRIEA new plant that will process local corn into snack food – much of it to go to a company in Detroit – and employ 13-15 workers is being launched in Chatham. With the help of a $299,612 Ontario Rural Economic Development grant, Dover Corn Products Ltd., owned by businessman Gerald Lozon, has installed a modern corn mill to produce high-end corn products in what used to be a Redpath Sugar plant. "We hope to be up and running in about a month," said office administrator Crissey Aarssen.The new corn-milling plant was designed and built by Jozsef Alberti, plant manager/engineer for GrandPaPa's Canister Snacks Inc. of Detroit, which will be the main customer for Dover’s output of ground and bagged Kent County corn.Dover expects to purchase 6,000 acres of corn from local farmers and generate nearly $6 million in sales in it first year. Two future phases of expansion "are our main goal if everything goes as planned," Aarssen said."The retrofitted facility will boast modern processing equipment, and will be the first corn processing operation of its kind in all of Ontario," said Pat Hoy, MPP for Chatham-Kent-Essex. ""This project will benefit all of Chatham-Kent with new marketing opportunities for farmers and additional employment in Chatham as well," said Maria Van Bommel, MPP for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex and Parliamentary Assistant to Agriculture Minister Carol Mitchell. BF Farm income increase cloaks danger signals Ontario beekeepers estimate winter losses of 30 to 40 per cent
Canada Faces Below-Average Hurricane Season, Will Farmers be Safe? Wednesday, May 27, 2026 As the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season begins, Canadian farmers and rural communities are being reminded that preparation remains critical, even with forecasts calling for fewer storms. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) says modern forecasting systems are ready to deliver... Read this article online
Ontario Invests $7M in Agri-Food Innovation Tuesday, May 26, 2026 The Ontario government is committing up to $7 million to support 34 new research projects aimed at transforming innovative ideas into practical, market-ready solutions for farmers and food processors across the province. Delivered through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance, the... Read this article online
Sunrise Farms invests over $100 million to build advanced poultry plant in Woodstock Monday, May 25, 2026 Ontario’s agri-food sector is set for another major boost as Sunrise Farms announced an investment of more than $100 million to build a state-of-the-art poultry processing facility in Woodstock. The expansion—described as the largest greenfield project in the company’s history—will... Read this article online
Falling Behind on Direct Alcohol Shipping Deadline Monday, May 25, 2026 Canada’s small alcohol producers are growing increasingly frustrated as a promised timeline for direct-to-consumer (DTC) alcohol shipping reforms approaches with little visible progress. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is calling out federal and provincial... Read this article online
Saskatchewan Startup Unveils Portable Device to Detect Crop Diseases in the Field Monday, May 25, 2026 With global crop losses from pests and diseases reaching as high as 40 percent annually, a Saskatchewan-based startup is working to equip farmers with faster, more practical tools to protect their yields. PathoScan Technologies, founded in Saskatoon, has developed a portable... Read this article online