Ontario’s food and beverage processing industry forges partnerships with newcomer organizations

Workshop identifies opportunities for processors, newcomer groups to work together

(BRAMPTON, ON – January 16, 2018) – With the Ontario food and beverage industry offering a wide range of job openings for employees of all skill levels, processors joined representatives from economic development, academic, and newcomer employment support services organizations to discuss how to make it easier for new Canadians to find jobs in the industry.

The workshop held today in Brampton, Ontario is part of Taste Your Future, an initiative led by Food and Beverage Ontario to encourage more new Canadians, young people and recent graduates to consider jobs and careers in food and beverage processing—an industry that is seeking to create 60,000 new jobs by 2020. Workshop participants discussed ways to overcome barriers facing new Canadians including how to raise awareness about opportunities in the sector, training, language and certification requirements.

“Food and beverage processors provide numerous job and career opportunities for new Canadians across the province,” said Norm Beal, CEO of Food and Beverage Ontario. “Too many of these companies struggle to fill job openings with skilled employees. We want to ensure all job seekers, including new Canadians, know about these opportunities and think of food and beverage processing when looking for a place to work.”

“There are many resources available both for new Canadians and for companies looking to hire. From employment supports to online courses in food safety that newcomers can complete before they arrive in Canada, the processing industry is making it easier than ever before for new Canadians to choose a career in food and beverage processing,” said Jennefer Griffith, Executive Director of the Food Processing Human Resources Council. “Workshops like this that bring industry and service organizations together go a long way to kickstarting collaboration and ensuring people know about these services and how to access them.”

With more than 130,000 Ontarians working for more than 3,800 businesses across the province—and growing—the food and beverage processing industry offers a wide range of job and career options from food scientist and butcher to marketer, accountant, and engineer.  

About Food and Beverage Ontario and Taste Your Future

Food and Beverage Ontario is a not-for-profit, leadership organization advancing the interests of Ontario's food and beverage processors. FBO's focus is on the success, prosperity and growth of the food and beverage processing industry. For more information go to www.foodandbeverageontario.ca. Taste Your Future is an awareness campaign led by FBO to raise awareness among new Canadians and young people of the abundance of job and career opportunities in the sector. Taste Your Future is supported by Growing Forward 2, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. Learn more at www.tasteyourfuture.ca.

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Media Contact:

Isabel Dopta, Director of Communications, Food and Beverage Ontario
519.993.1192 or idopta@foodandbeverageontario.ca