Nestlé Canada invests $35m to expand Toronto confectionery factory

Nov - Food Bev - Website Banner - TIJ vs TTO 300x250.gif

Access more as a FoodBev subscriber

Sign up to FoodBev and unlock more insights from the international food and beverage industry. Subscribers have access to webinars, newsletters, publications and more...

Subscribe now >

Nestlé Canada has completed an investment of more than CAD $50 million (approx. $35 million) to expand and modernise its confectionery factory in downtown Toronto, adding production capacity and new manufacturing capabilities

The project has added new physical production space, advanced manufacturing equipment and expanded site utilities at the facility, which has operated in Toronto for more than 100 years.

The site is also Nestlé’s only certified peanut-free facility in North America and employs around 550 people.

A key part of the investment is the installation of a new flexible moulding line designed to manufacture KitKat and Aero products.

According to Nestlé, the equipment will provide greater production flexibility and enable the company to support growth across its confectionery portfolio.

The factory also produces other Canadian confectionery brands including Smarties.

Chandra Kumar, president and CEO of Nestlé Canada, said the investment would provide the factory’s workforce with “new capacity and capability” to support the company’s next phase of growth and innovation in confectionery.

The project has also included a redesign of the site layout, with the updated configuration intended to improve logistics and reduce traffic disruption on Sterling Road for the surrounding community.

Nestlé said the expansion also supports its responsible sourcing commitments. Confectionery products manufactured at the Toronto facility use cocoa sourced through the Nestlé Cocoa Plan, and the company also sources cocoa through its Income Accelerator Program.

The programme currently reaches approximately 45,000 cocoa-farming families in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, with Nestlé saying it aims to help address the income gap faced by farming households and reduce the risk of child labour.

The Toronto factory forms part of Nestlé’s wider Canadian manufacturing network. The company employs approximately 3,500 people across around 12 locations in the country.

The expansion represents a further investment in domestic confectionery production, with Nestlé highlighting the facility’s role in manufacturing products for the Canadian market.