Duinkerken Foods Inc., a client of the Prince Edward Island Food Technology Centre, is pleased to announce that its processing plant in Charlottetown recently started to supply Walmart stores across Canada with gluten-free products.
Duinkerken Foods distributes its products through retailers such as Sobeys Atlantic, Sobeys Quebec, Sobeys Ontario, Sobeys Western, Atlantic Superstores, Food Basics, Associated Grocers, The Bay, Co-op Atlantic, Canada’s Safeway, A&P, and Bulk Barn. Now, Duinkerken Foods’ newly expanded line of ten gluten-free products – from white sandwich bread mix to cookie mix – are being sold in Walmart stores across Canada.
“Our products are competitive as they provide those on a restricted diet with consistent quality, while offering consumers the same taste and texture of the food they enjoyed before commencing a gluten-free diet,” said Brenda Van Duinkerken, owner of Duinkerken Foods. “Our goal is to make a difference in the lives of people who are restricted to a special diet. By working with Walmart we are reaching more people across Canada who require gluten-free products and will appreciate the focus we put on the great taste.”
Allan Campbell, Minister of Innovation and Advanced Learning, said, “Government is committed to working with Island companies to develop food products that have commercial potential. We are pleased to have continued our support as Duinkerken Foods expanded their product line and market reach. Adding a company like Walmart to their distribution chain is a remarkable achievement for Duinkerken Foods.”
Duinkerken Foods has been working with the Prince Edward Island Food Technology Centre since the concept stage of their first gluten-free product. Since then, the Food Technology Centre (FTC) has provided technical support for development of many of their new products.
“The Food Technology Centre congratulates Brenda and Wayne VanDuinkerken of Duinkerken Foods on their marketing achievements and we are proud to acknowledge that FTC’s technical expertise was helpful to these Island entrepreneurs. We help clients in a multitude of ways from product and process development through to quality assurance and food safety,” said Dr. Jim Smith, executive director of the Food Technology Centre. “This allows our clients to take an idea, develop it in the pilot plant, and bring it to commercialization. By offering these services in Prince Edward Island, we are helping companies bring their food products to their markets, and making them more competitive and innovative in the marketplace.”
The Prince Edward Island Food Technology Centre is dedicated to the development of new and improved food products and processes on behalf of clients from PEI and beyond. FTC offers a broad range of services to the food processing and bioresource industries. It has infrastructure and expertise that help its clients commercialize new products. This includes an analytical lab that provides services such as food safety analysis and nutrition labelling, a product development laboratory for new product trials, and four pilot plants for process development and scale-up.