Kraft Heinz Canada is extending its deal to buy tomato and bean supplies from Highbury Canco through at least the end of 2027.
The ingredients will go into ketchup and other foods worth about $1 billion at retail over the life of the contract.
Highbury Canco employs more than 600 people at its facility at Leamington. Besides tomato paste, it produces Heinz beans, Heinz tomato juice, and Classico pasta sauce.d
Heinz finishes processing to ketchup at a plant at Montreal.
"Extending our partnership with Kraft Heinz Canada for another four years provides significant stability for our facility and for our workforce," said Highbury Canco chief executive officer Sam Diab.
"This is a mutually beneficial alliance that is of great significance to the Leamington community, and for all the Canadians that can continue to enjoy Kraft Heinz Canada products being produced at facilities such as ours," Diab said.
The plant was at the centre of controversy with the Ontario Processing Vegetable Marketing Board. The Ontario Farm Products Marketing Council dismissed the board in March, 2017, appointed Elmer Buchanan chairman.
He was a former minister of agriculture under the NDP government and he negotiated new grower contracts with processors.
The board has since regained its powers and has elected its own directors.
