Kraft Heinz hits back at what it called Trudeau’s ‘misleading’ comment about its Canadian ketchup

A ketchup big is seeing crimson after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau introduced up its previous exit from Canada whereas discussing a possible Canada-U.S. commerce conflict.

Talking with reporters after a Wednesday assembly with the premiers, Trudeau urged shoppers to hunt out Canadian-made merchandise to keep away from U.S. imports that might quickly be extra expensive due to retaliatory tariffs.

“That is why we are going to look, as now we have prior to now, at issues which have replacements for Canadian shoppers that would not be tariffed,” Trudeau mentioned. “The instance from final time was Heinz’s ketchup being changed by French’s ketchup as a result of French’s was nonetheless utilizing Canadian tomatoes in its ketchup.”

Whereas it’s true that Heinz was not making ketchup in Canada on the time, the corporate says that modified a number of years in the past.

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Kraft Heinz Canada saved nothing bottled up in a press release issued Thursday, saying it’s “deeply dissatisfied” that Trudeau made “deceptive statements” about its product.

In 2014, Heinz sold off its hundred-year outdated tomato processing plant in Leamington, Ont., leaving native farmers and employees within the lurch and setting off a rivalry with French’s. However after fierce consumer backlash, Heinz returned to producing ketchup in Canada in 2020.

In its assertion, Kraft Heinz says it employs greater than 1,000 Canadians at its facility in Mont Royal, Que., and is the most important purchaser of tomatoes in Ontario.

“We have been resolute in our determination to deliver the manufacturing of HEINZ Ketchup again to Canada in 2020 and are proud that HEINZ Ketchup is made in Canada, by Canadians, utilizing Canadian tomatoes,” the assertion mentioned. 

U.S. President Donald Trump recommended Monday that he may hit Canada with a sweeping 25 per cent tariff on Canadian items on Feb. 1, sparking a sequence of discussions amongst federal and provincial politicians about how one can reply.