An international study has placed Canada among the top countries in
which to invest in food processing.
It ranked Canada fourth among the nine countries studied, behind the
United Kingdom, Italy and the Netherlands, in terms of the after-tax
costs of setting up and running a food processing company for 10 years.
Canada was found to have a 7.5 percent cost advantage over the United
States, which was used as the study’s baseline.
Federal agriculture minister Lyle Vanclief welcomed the study’s
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findings, saying it shows why Canada is a “highly attractive location”
for food processors.
“Not only does this country produce quality products, but it does so in
a cost-effective manner,” he said in a News release
news.
Food processing made up just one part of the study, which took 10
months to complete and covered more than 86 cities in Austria, France,
Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Canada, the U.S.,
and Japan.
The study named Canada the most cost-competitive industrialized
country, with a 14.5 percent advantage over the U.S. The U.K. ranked
second with a 13.1 percent advantage, while Italy was third at 11.4
percent. Japan had the highest cost structure.
Besides food processing, the study also looked at 11 other industries,
including metal components, plastic products, electronic assembly,
pharmaceuticals, software, biomedical research and development and
corporate services.
The study was sponsored by 45 economic development agencies in six
countries, including Canada.
A number of international companies worked on the study, including
KPMG, Colliers International and MMK Consulting.
