Canada’s veal and lamb products processor Délimax-Montpak has acquired Terrebonne-based Viandes Forget.

Established by the Forget family, Viandes Forget operates a federally inspected multi-species slaughterhouse with nearly 70 employees.

Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.

Montpak president Alex Fontaine said: “We are extremely pleased to welcome Viandes Forget in our group as it is also a family business with a long history in the meat industry.

“We are confident that this transaction will help us to expand our product offering to our customers and better serve the North American niche meat market.”

By acquiring Viandes Forget, Délimax-Montpak aims to maintain its foothold in the local lamb market in Eastern Canada.

As the newly acquired slaughterhouse also has the capacity to process beef, Délimax-Montpak will be able to introduce a local beef programme to its customers.

The deal is said to be in line with Délimax-Montpak’s vision to further enhance its processing capacity and enter the beef market.

Additionally, the deal is expected to benefit customers of the Délimax-Montpak group and its US subsidiary, Catelli Brothers, as Viandes Forget has more than six decades of experience in processing and distributing meat products, as well as three decades of expertise in livestock farming.

Following this acquisition, Délimax-Montpak’s processing operations will employ over 850 people at five plants in Canada and the US. Its customers include food distribution and sales companies in North America.

Délimax-Montpak is headed by brothers Alexandre, Donald and Fabien Fontaine. The group owns 105 corporate farms and works with another nearly 270 affiliated farms.