Food News, August 2009

Alberta Agriculture & Rural Development (AARD) Programs

AARD Workforce Development Program provides funding to assist agri-processing companies with productivity improvement projects. Eligible activities include lean manufacturing expertise to identify and provide coaching on process improvements or food processing engineering expertise to identify process improvements, technology and automation options and analyze costs and productivity impacts. Contact your AARD Development Officer for details.

Agri-processing companies and agri-industry associations are eligible to apply for travel assistance to perform recruitment missions to fill labour shortages they are not able to fill locally. Applicants can apply for funding for domestic job fairs outside of Alberta or recruiting missions internationally to interview and select workers. Contact AARD Recruitment Program Manager at 403 340 5369 for details.

AARD offers agriculture industry employers assistance with identification of turnover causes and the development of retention strategies. Funding sources are available, for details contact AARD Retention Program Manager at 780-980-4220 for details.

Is your company familiar with Lean Manufacturing Principles but looking for actual applications rather than methodologies and concepts?
Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development and Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters are presenting a workshop designed to bring a practical approach to implementing "lean manufacturing" in your food processing facility.

It will focus on A3, a lean tool that is used as a management process to create a standard method for innovating, planning, problem solving, and building structures for a broader and deeper form of thinking - a practical repeatable approach to organizational learnings.

The 1-day workshop will be held in Edmonton on August 21, 2009 and there is no charge to attend. Please contact Avery Murphy at avery.murphy@gov.ab.ca or 780-645-6329 for more information.

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Upcoming Events

Reaching New Markets/Beyond Borders USA
Expand your small or medium-sized company into new domestic & international markets. Learn how to break into the most promising markets in the world and acquire the skills & tactics needed for continued success.
*Featuring afternoon sessions customized for agri-food processors.
*If you have ever wondered exactly what your products have to go through when they cross the border, make sure you attend both days.
September 16, 2009 • 8AM - 5PM
Deerfoot Inn & Casino Calgary, AB
September 17, 2009 • Border Tour & Trade Seminars
Coutts, AB
For details and registration, visit: www.reachingnewmarkets.com

WCFN 11 ^th Annual Conference
Healthy business 09 - Growth and Opportunity
Nov 3 – 4, 2009 , Delta Edmonton South, Edmonton , AB
Rapidly changing consumer behavior across the global marketplace is driving new and innovative practices and Canadian companies need to adapt and respond strategically if they are to be competitive.
Healthy Business 09 will explore growth tactics in a competitive marketplace by sharing information on challenges, success and lessons learned while discussing how integrating opportunity & innovation to help create sustainability and profitability in the functional food & natural health product sector. Respective speakers will share business fundamentals, regulatory issues and bridging the gap between the FFNHP industry and health & wellness professionals. As well, the conference and tradeshow will foster industry networking & business building opportunities while celebrating our industries best and brightest during the WCFN Excellence Awards. For more information go to www.wcfn.ca

The Alberta Foodservice Show
September 27-28, 2009 – Calgary Cancelled
For more info, contact Bruce Guerin at 866-751-3833, or visit the website at: http://www.crfa.ca/tradeshows/alberta/

Business Solutions Den
Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development is again offering the Business Solutions Den program to Alberta processing companies.
If you are a company with credible management, financial commitment and the ability to move ahead, however you are facing challenges (access to capital, marketing issues, product development, strategic alliances, human resources, legal matters etc) and are open to discuss these issues you may be interested in the Business Solutions Den program. Companies selected for this program will receive private, confidential coaching from a panel of business specialists. Two sessions will be held this fall, November 3rd in Calgary and November 5th in Edmonton.
For more information about this program contact Kathy Bosse at 403-755-6116 or Jim Cooper 780-679-5176.

Gathering Market Information for New Product Introductions Workshop
October 20, 2009 in Grande Prairie.
This workshop focuses on how to gather market information & prepare for product positioning in cost effective ways to plan how to use the intelligence to get your product ready to enter the market.
Contact Elaine Stenbraaten at 780-835-7531 (toll free within
AB 310-0000 then the number) or email Elaine.Stenbraaten@gov.ab.ca

Healthy Business 2009
Nov 3-4, 2009 - Edmonton, AB:
Healthy Business 2009 will explore survival tactics in a competitive marketplace by sharing information on challenges, success and lessons learned in the functional food & natural health product sector.
For more info, contact Greg Edgelow at edge@wcfn.ca or 604-822-6920.

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Alberta Food Processors Association Events

Nutritional Labelling - September 9, Calgary
Nutritional Labelling became mandatory for most pre-packaged food on December 12, 2007. Have an overview of the Canada’s Nutrition Labelling regulations and the similarities and differences with the USA regulations.

Program Building - September 16 & 17 @ Calgary, 8:00- 5:00
Teaches how to build your safety program.
Topics to be covered are: Company H&S policy and management commitment; Hazard identification, risks and risk management; Inspection programs; Worker training and emergency response training; Program administration; Legislation; Developing a health and safety manual.

AFPA offers Guelph Food Technology Centre's (GFTC's) HACCP Courses.
GFTC is Canada's largest HACCP Trainer and offers internationally recognized BASICS, HACCP and Food Safety Systems, Food Quality Systems, Product Development, Production, and Sanitation and Microbiology courses.
HACCP I: Prerequisite Programs - September 28 & 29, Red Deer
In this practical program you will learn about: the key components of the six Prerequisites Programs, its documentation template and use of plant layouts blueprints for food safety considerations.
HACCP II: Developing your HACCP Plan - September 30-Oct 2, Red Deer, AB

Develop your own HACCP Plan through this hands-on program which walks participants through the development of a HACCP plan from product description to the Master HACCP Documents (forms 1-10). Chart your own success steps to HACCP system implementation.

To register for any of the above courses, call Melody at 403-201-3657 Ext. 21 in Calgary or go to http://www.afpa.com/snq/

Plant Floor Supervisory Training Course - September 30, 2009 from 9:00-4:30 @ Edmonton
This 5 day course (5 Wednesdays) provides an opportunity for Lead Hands & Front Line supervisors to improve their skills to create a work environment that will optimize their employees’ ability to work productively on a consistent basis. http://www.afpa.com/cgi/anote.cgi?fname=00525&sec=abo for registration information.
Meat Industry Convention & Tradeshow
March 12-14, 2010 Edmonton E-mail melody@afpa.com or call 403-201-3657 ext. 21 for more information.

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Food Processing Development Centre (FPDC)

FPDC is now home to the only publicly-accessible commercial-scale High Pressure Processing (HPP) machine in Canada. HPP is an environmentally-friendly technology used in food preservation, food safety and the development of new food products and processes.

HPP applies extremely high pressures, without heat, to food products. The fresh appearance, flavour, textural attributes and nutrient content of food products are maintained because heat is not used. Similar to canning and pasteurization, HPP increases food safety by eliminating bacteria, including Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp. and Listeria spp.

In Canada, HPP is approved for use for ready-to-eat meats, ready meals, and applesauce. The FPDC is developing an HPP program to assist in research, development, and commercialization activities in the crops and meat product areas.

For more information, please contact Karen Erin at 780-980-4864.