Major ketchup company Kraft Heinz Canada called out Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after saying the company’s ketchup was not made in Canada during a press conference on potential tariff targets this week.
Trudeau was speaking at a press conference in Montebello, Que., and spoke to U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threat against Canada.
Trump has threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on all imports from Canada as early as Feb 1. The prime minister said he will retaliate against U.S. tariffs by countering with tariffs on American products.
“We remain confident in the facts,” Trudeau told reporters.
“Of America’s top five trading partners, Canada is the only one with whom the United States runs a trade surplus in manufacturing.”
About 12 minutes into the press conference, Trudeau talks about replacements for Canadian consumers that wouldn’t be tariffed.
“That’s why we will look, as we have in the past, at things that have replacements for Canadian consumers that wouldn’t be tariffed,” Trudeau told reporters on Wednesday.
That’s when Trudeau stepped in sauce, prompting release from Kraft Heinz on Thursday.
“The example from last time was Heinz’s ketchup being replaced by French’s ketchup, because French’s was still using Canadian tomatoes in its ketchup.”
Kraft Heinz promptly popped its lid and released the statement on saying that it has Canadian operations.
“Kraft Heinz Canada is deeply disappointed that Prime Minister Trudeau has made misleading statements that Heinz Ketchup is not made in Canada and that it may be a potential target for counter-vailing tariffs,” the statement read.
“More than 1,000 hard-working Canadians at our Mont Royal Quebec facility, together with our many suppliers in the province, produce Heinz Ketchup for Canadians using tomatoes grown in Leamington, Ontario. As one of the largest manufacturers of food in the country, Kraft Heinz is also the largest purchaser of tomatoes in Ontario.”
Ketchup production did move outside of Canada to the U.S. for five years, between 2015 and 2020. However, production returned to Canada in 2020, the company says.
“We were resolute in our decision to bring the production of Heinz Ketchup back to Canada in 2020 and are proud that Heinz Ketchup is made in Canada, by Canadians, using Canadian tomatoes.”
Trudeau is in Montebello for his final cabinet annual winter retreat before he steps down as Liberal leader in March.
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