Saladexpress partners with European investor

Saint-Rémi, Québec

Québec-based vegetable processor Saladexpress, has partnered with Agrial, a major French agriculture and agri-food co-operative, to implement a factory modernization.

“This partnership, the first of its size for Agrial in Québec, will be mutually beneficial,” said Sylvain Racette, CEO of Saladexpress. “We’re currently laying the groundwork for growth. This requires an investment to boost factory productivity and maintain and even increase our workforce.”

Saladexpress Inc. started in 1989 in Saint-Rémi, Montérégie, and has now become a Québec leader in the transformation of pre-sliced salads and vegetables. It now also operates in Ontario and the Maritimes, offering a variety of products and premium quality, fresh and preservative-free foods that are ready to cook or eat.

Bertrand Totel, director of Agrial’s Fresh Vegetables and Fruits Division, said the partnership will allow Agrial to establish a foothold in a growing market while providing Saladexpress with a partner that has well-known brands popular with consumers.

Agrial’s Fresh Vegetables and Fruits Division is a European leader in fresh fruits and vegetables and includes the brands Florette, in the ready-to-use fruits and vegetables segment, Priméale, in the fresh fruits and vegetables segment and Créaline, in the fresh purées and soups segment.

Immediate plans are to modernize the Quebec plant, which currently employs 120 people.