In August 2021, Jefo held a ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of a new C$42.5 million production plant in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec. In the long run, the new plant is expected to enable Jefo to increase its current production by up to 400%.
“If all goes well and equipment is received in a timely manner we may start operations in April 2023,” Emilie Fontaine, Vice President Brand & Products at Jefo told Feedinfo at IPPE in Atlanta yesterday. “However, the launch of commercial production of micro-encapsulated products is expected for the end of 2023 or early-2024.”
The new 180,000-square-foot plant will initially feature two production lines in the first phase with a potential expansion to six lines. Fontaine said Jefo will fine-tune the two first lines before moving to six production lines in phase two. The new lines will also allow Jefo to work with ingredients the company hasn’t used before.
Fontaine also pointed out that in recent months Jefo has hired quality control, regulatory and sales staff. The company is looking at hiring more technical employees. As for production workers, they will be hired along the way as the project progresses.
“The new plant will also provide extra supply security, but Jefo has always kept a large inventory even prior to the Covid pandemic, keeping 3-6 month stocks at all times,” Fontaine also commented.
Jefo’s Vice President Brand & Products confirmed that the current plant will remain in operation and meets current needs, but the new plant will lead to more efficiencies and speed in production to meet future needs.
The current plant will be eventually upgraded too and will also be used as a pilot facility to test for new products, she said.
In 2021, Jefo said it expected to double its sales of specialty products in the next three years. Fontaine claimed that this goal is nearly met.
“Customers are increasingly adopting the concept. They also have the pressure to improve efficiency. Speciality additives help with that. They seek out technologies like micro-encapsulation,” she said.