Our team is heading back to the South Shore of Montreal, in the Montérégie area. Known as Quebec’s larder, with its fertile land and more than half of its territory devoted to agriculture, the Montérégie is overflowing with producers, market gardeners, and artisans who, in their own way, define Quebec’s agri-food portrait. This region stands out for its field crops as well as its market garden and animal productions, but also for its orchards, cider mills, vineyards, and microbreweries.
That’s why our meeting point was at Le Picoleur, in St-Hyacinthe. We were able to learn more about the conception of the beer of the Brasseurs du Monde and their current reality, given the scarcity of raw materials, the challenges of the industry, and the consumption trends that change year after year. Their adaptation to this environment is quite remarkable! We were not surprised to learn that they have won several awards in various international competitions (88 medals for 34 beers, including 4 world champions).
We were very happy to see our Quebec Tuna on the menu! A little nod to our trip to Gaspésie!
After being educated on the fascinating world of beer, we headed to one of our packaging partners, Talthi, which specializes in the design and manufacture of food packaging.
Having just moved into its Saint-Hyacinthe plant, the company must already deal with an expansion, the management of new equipment from Europe, and the renovation of its offices. This is the new reality for Talthi, a company that specializes in the design and manufacture of food packaging.
A sign that the pandemic has had a positive impact on Talthi is that sales have jumped 20-30% since the pandemic began. This growth has been accompanied by the hiring and training of new employees, adding to the large Talthi team, which now consists of 25 members.
In the factory we were greeted by Steven and Jason Thibault, two brothers who are passionate about their work. We quickly noticed the family spirit that reigns on the premises: the wife, the sister, the daughter, the sister-in-law, in short, the whole family is there, and each one has his field of expertise. The team soon felt like they were at a family party where passion for their work was the order of the day. The Thibault brothers practically eat packaging! Well versed in the finer details of the design process, standards, and specifications associated with the recovery of plastic waste, as well as best practices for reducing their environmental footprint, these two brothers are true packaging encyclopedias.
We were amazed by the technical nature of the process. From the idea to the design, through multiple prototypes and the choice of material, it is obvious that the creation of a packaging container is quite complex and requires several impressive machines in terms of size, capacity, and precision.
One thing is for sure, with a new packaging concept launched every month, Talthi knows how to stand out and be a leader in the market. The Talthi team also told us that a 100% local project was coming soon! The pride of this (local) accomplishment was felt, as much by them as by us! The challenge of recycling the raw material here and reusing it at 99.9% to create a 100% local container by a local company is quite remarkable.
Their concern for the environment is also prodigious. Talthi takes concrete steps to reduce waste and minimize their environmental impact by ensuring the sustainability of their products, from manufacturing to consumption to reuse.
To wrap up the visit, the Talthi team was very proud to mention that they have partnered with the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation to support this very important cause. They are committed to donating 1¢ for every pink container from the Bistro collection sold between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022! The name of their campaign is very catchy: Talthi wraps in pink for the cause. A movement Gordon Food Service will be supporting with great interest!
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