Provincial and federal government representatives chose a fitting week in Ontario — Craft Beer Week — to announce an investment of over $1.6 million into 20 projects at breweries across the province.
“Ontario’s craft beer industry is a great success story for this province,” said Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay. “Craft brewers continue to build on new market opportunities in the production and sale of a range of premium quality beers. As Ontarians enjoy the activities of this year’s Craft Beer week, we are very excited to announce our support for Ontario’s brewers by making key investments in the development of their businesses.”
This #ocbweek, happy to announce $1.6M for 20 @OntCraftBrewers for business dev. in the growing #craftbeer sector. https://t.co/uClnAP80Oj
— Lawrence MacAulay (@L_MacAulay) June 14, 2016
The funding will help breweries expand operations, whether that means developing human resources, making capital investments or creating a marketing strategy.
“By supporting our small brewers, we are supporting local communities to grow Ontario’s economy while building on the industry’s booming success,” said Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Jeff Leal.
In Ontario alone, the craft beer industry employs more than 1500 people, through roughly 140 craft breweries. Last year, craft beer in the province generated more than $60 million in sales at the Liquor Control Board of Canada.
The investment is made possible through Growing Forward 2.
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