Mondelez Canada has invested $40 million into an expansion of its candy plant in Hamilton’s west end.
The investment has created 50 new full time jobs at the factory, which produces iconic candies under the Maynard’s brand, including Sour Patch Kids, Swedish Fish and Fuzzy Peaches.
Plant Manager Bernard Ryan says the Ewen Road factory now has a total workforce of 350, which he describes as “highly skilled manufacturing jobs.”
Mondelez Canada President Martin Parent adds that while people think of candy as “something simple”, he says it “requires a lot of effort in ensuring it is made consistently.”
For propriety reasons, Parent won’t say exactly how much candy is produced in Hamilton, but he adds that the upgrades allow them to produce “millions and millions more pieces” every day.
Parent says the Hamilton facility was the “most efficient” in the company’s network before the investment and has improved its flexibility and increased production so it can continue “to meet consumer demand in Canada for the next few years.”
To highlight the investment, members of the media were given tours of the Mondelez plant on Wednesday morning.