Canada’s giant food-processing sector places it second among the country’s manufacturers. With over $100 billion in sales, only the makers of transportation equipment surpass its value to the country’s industrial output.
Innovation in the Canadian Food Processing Industry
Canadian food processors seem to have become an innovative bunch in recent years, introducing new methods to their operations and by adding novel or upgraded products to the market. In fact, nearly half (48%) introduced new methods to their operations while 39% made new or improved products. Additionally, nearly three quarters (72%) introduced a product, process, organizational, or marketing improvement from 2016 through 2018.
These Canadian companies implemented new methods in how they practice their business, including introducing novel workplace configurations or creating associations with others outside the industry. Nearly half (48%) of firms in the food-processing industry introduced new promotional techniques, including utilising product placement, pricing methods, or packaging design and other aesthetics to make them stand out. Methods that included social media marketing to promote their businesses and products continued to gain traction.
And the innovation in Canada’s food processing industry isn’t isolated, it occurs nationwide. Though British Columbia and the territories – Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut – generally innovated more (44%), Ontario (43%) and Quebec (42%) followed closely behind them. Meanwhile, Ontario led in the area of process innovation (51%), with Quebec (49%) and British Columbia – including the territories – (48%) close behind.
Albertans were most likely to update their marketing techniques, though the industry in British Columbia and Quebec (both 51%) followed closely behind. While British Columbia and the territories rated highest (50%) for reforming how they were organized, Ontario (49%) and Quebec (48%) trailed closely in this category.
