Asham Curling Supplies: A Global Footprint
Curlers worldwide are “hurrying hard” to grab shoes made right here in Manitoba.
As the only Manitoba-based company distributing curling shoes internationally, Asham Curling Supplies proudly ships to countries like Sweden, Japan and Germany.
“We ship to the whole curling world,” says founder Arnold Asham, a Level 3 Curl Canada coach.
The company also customizes regular shoes with sliding platforms, helping curlers of all levels perform their best.
Beyond curling, Arnold Asham’s Métis heritage shines through his sponsorship of the Asham Stompers, a high-energy dance group performing around the globe.
Maple Leaf Foods: ‘Bacon’ A Difference
Maple Leaf Foods is the world’s first major carbon-neutral food company.
The Lagimodiere Boulevard plant in Winnipeg is home to the company’s Bacon Centre of Excellence, which serves as Maple Leaf Foods’ primary hub for pre-cooked bacon distribution. The 500,000-square-foot facility has its own warehouse plus four unique plants under one roof to produce products that are sold across Canada and the U.S.
The company’s Brandon plant processes hogs to make fresh pork products — including leg ham, tenderloins, side ribs, back ribs, brisket bones, bellies and more — for distribution both locally and around the world. Using science-based targets to reduce emissions as quickly as possible, Maple Leaf became the world’s first major food company to become carbon neutral five years ago. And in the last decade, they’ve saved enough water to fill 25,000 swimming pools and reduced their energy consumption by 102,400 MWh — equivalent to taking more than 18,500 cars off the road in a year.
Vermillion Growers: Year-Round Freshness
Picture it: you’re enjoying a BLT for lunch, safe and warm indoors on a blustery -30 C January day. Would you ever think the plump, juicy tomatoes in your sandwich were grown right here in Manitoba — and picked off the vine just days earlier?
Located in Dauphin, Vermillion Growers is Manitoba’s largest commercial vegetable production greenhouse, spanning 12 acres with a mission to make a difference by growing food, growing people and growing community.
Since the juicy tomatoes are grown in a greenhouse, they’re available to consumers all year round — yes, even in the middle of winter! The company’s Dauphin location means they can easily ship tomatoes by road. This year, 20 per cent of its product was shipped to the U.S.
The company celebrated its grand opening in July 2023. In its first year, Vermillion Growers produced 2.2 million kilograms of fresh tomatoes at the state-of-the-art operation — and that number is set to double next season.
Sustainability is also top of mind, since the company collects 50 per cent of the water needed for irrigation from its roof system via rainwater and snowmelt.
Friesens: Leaving A Lasting Impression
Every year, Friesens Corporation prints nearly 30 million books — that’s almost one for every Canadian! These books reach readers around the globe, with the majority shipped within North America. Situated in rural Manitoba, Friesens is home to nearly half the hardcover book-binding lines in Canada, showcasing its commitment to quality and innovation within the community.
The Altona company also leads the way as North America’s most automated book manufacturer. In its state-of-the-art facilities, the company currently operates two industrial robots and six collaborative robots (cobots), with two additional industrial robots scheduled for installation in December.
These robots work alongside employee-owners, assisting with repetitive and heavy tasks that could otherwise lead to injuries and long-term muscle discomfort. The industrial robots were custom-made to stack sections of books onto a collator, where they are compiled and bound.
One of Friesens’ claims to fame is having printed the first several series of Harry Potter books for Canadian readers, making history in 2004: when author J.K. Rowling heard that the Canadian publisher Raincoast Books and Friesens used 100 per cent post-consumer waste paper to print copies of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, she insisted all future books about the boy wizard be printed “tree-free,” worldwide.
