Ottawa has announced $11.6 million for 10 projects at eight Saskatoon companies, money the federal government says will help soften the blow from U.S. tariffs.
Buckley Belanger, secretary of state for rural development, made the announcement Tuesday at RMD Engineering, one of the businesses receiving the money.
The money comes in response to the breakdown of Canada-U.S. trade negotiations and the ensuing tariffs. Belanger said Canada wasn’t being offered a deal worth taking.
“Canadian jobs and Canadian sovereignty are not things that we are prepared to bargain away,” Belanger said at the announcement.
The federal dollars come through the Regional Tariff Response Initiative, a PrairiesCan program.
Who’s getting the money?
Doepker Industries will get $1.7 million to install equipment to expand its trailer lineup, and another $1 million for a new enterprise resource planning system.
Drake Meat Processors is receiving $3.2 million across two projects — $2.2 million to expand and automate a sausage and beef line, and $1 million for a cured pork automation line.
RMD Engineering is getting $1 million for production equipment.
Great Western Brewery will get $1 million for production, packaging and diversifying its market.
Superior Milwork will receive $1 million to increase capacity in home cabinet manufacturing.
Tritana Holdings will get $1 million to expand its facilities and upgrade infrastructure.
Croatia Industries will get $1 million to increase production and capacity in the steel industry.
Biktrix Enterprises will get $683,500 to expand and scale marketing.
The federal government says the 10 projects support more than 137 jobs. Saskatchewan’s manufacturing sector employed 30,400 people as of the June labour force survey — about four per cent of the provincial workforce, according to a news release.
RMD founder Jim Boire said the tariffs hurt his company even before they took effect.
“The threat was enough. Buyers of ours got nervous, the orders slowed down, and a market we spent years and years developing started backing away from anything that had to do with the border with Canada,” Boire said.
Drake Meat Processors, founded in 1949 in Drake, Sask., is finishing a new plant in Saskatoon, due to open in December. Director of operations Caileigh Beckman said the company employs about 140 people now and expects to grow past 300 once the new plant is running in early 2027.
“When trade conditions shift quickly, it shows up immediately in the things that I manage. We pay what we pay for our inputs, the cost of the equipment that we’ve purchased months ago and the market access our customers depend on,” Beckman said.
“Those aren’t abstractions for a company of our size. They’re decisions impacting employee shifts.”