TORONTO — Maple Leaf Foods is ready to start a new chapter with news from head office that the formal sale process of its Ontario pork-processing business in Burlington, Ontario has been launched.

This comes after renewed interest from potential purchasers and better economic and credit markets. "The sale of the Burlington business will complete the last phase of Maple Leaf's protein transformation journey and supports our commitment to refocus our growth in the value-added meat, meals and bakery business," Michael Vels, chief financial officer, said in a company release. "We are reinvigorating the sale process following renewed interest, including the potential of completing a sale to a producer group."

A recent CRFA survey of Canadian chefs revealed that the number 1 trend in foodservice today is local and sustainable food. But while chefs want to create local menus and customers want to order those dishes, there are significant challenges inherent in the current distribution channel that’s making it tough for everyone involved.

With that in mind, F&H asked some key industry stakeholders to talk about sourcing and distributing local food. Not surprisingly, all had strong feelings on the subject.

WINNIPEG — Three Western Canada restaurant chains are being lauded for their decision to switch to zero trans fat cooking oil.

Why is this news, you may be wondering, when almost every Canadian restaurant made the switch over the past few years? Well, Abc Country Restaurants, Earls Restaurants and Kelly O’Bryan’s Restaurants did it a decade ago, taking the lead in the Canadian foodservice industry when it comes to using healthier cooking oil.