Agriculture committee  I wouldn't want to speak for the government in terms of the strategic choices it will have to make. That being said, it is certain that offering support to hog producers is essential. They are in a crisis, just as we are. However, if we don't maintain the production base of the processing plants, it won't do much.

Agriculture committee  I think it would be useful to support the hog sector and other food sectors. We have to find a balance and not neglect the production sector. I know that we are already making significant efforts in that direction. We must also support our producers and our processing activities, because without producers, there is no processing.

Agriculture committee  You're right to point out that there have been good years, but we've had some terrible years. I would remind the committee that we operate in four sectors: fresh pork, processed pork, fresh poultry, and processed poultry. All of the sectors have benefited from those years when we have had good results.

Agriculture committee  This is a question that deserves a fairly detailed answer, if I may. The question of the amount of investment has been studied by our people. We're talking about $40 million — and I can confirm that figure — to keep the plant operating. Another thing we have to consider is the condition of the building.

Agriculture committee  I'll start answering your question and then I'll turn it over to my colleague. Certainly, a company like Olymel, which operates 35 facilities, is always reviewing its operations in order to improve its business processes. I would be lying to you if I said that plant closures would never happen again.

Agriculture committee  Madam, the hog industry is very cyclical. Right now, we are in a slump. We alluded to the labour issue. The pandemic, which made recruitment extremely difficult, prevented us from minimizing the impact of the situation, including the loss of the China market. As for possible avenues in the industry, I would say that Olymel has not decided to withdraw from the sector, but rather to refocus its activities on a volume that is more in line with our ability to add value to the product, either through our meat processing sector, or on value-added markets such as Japan and Korea, or on our domestic fresh meat market.

Agriculture committee  There are 123.

Agriculture committee  This possibility does not depend solely on Olymel; it also depends on the federal authorities. As far as we are concerned, we are going to work with the authorities so that those who wish to stay in the region can do so, although we are prepared to welcome them elsewhere.

Agriculture committee  We are working on it every day. The idea of reducing our exposure to the export market stems from the fact that it is the most volatile market. We lost the one in China. Fortunately, we were able to start exporting by‑products to China again. This is a base, it will not change.

Agriculture committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good morning, members of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. To begin, I would like to say a few words about Olymel. Olymel is the largest meat processor in the country. We operate in the pork and poultry sector. Our facilities are located in five Canadian provinces: New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan, where we operate farms.