- The Very Good Food Company has taken possession of its Vancouver production facility
- The Rupert Facility is expected to be capable of producing up to 37 million lbs of annualized product to be phased in over the next year
- The Rupert Facility spans approximately 45,000 sq. ft. and comprises production, refrigeration, warehousing, R&D and office space
- The facility is anticipated to be fully operational in the second quarter of 2021
- The Very Good Food Company is up 1.99 per cent to C$8.70 per share
The Very Good Food Company (VERY) has taken possession of its Vancouver production facility.
The Rupert Facility is expected to be capable of producing up to 37 million lbs of annualized product to be phased in over the next year. This would represent an approximate increase of 2,690 per cent over expected annualized production capacity of the company’s Victoria facility of 1,375,000 lbs per year.
Already built-out as a food production facility by its previous plant-based operator, Daiya Foods, the Rupert Facility spans approximately 45,000 sq. ft. and comprises production, refrigeration, warehousing, R&D and office space.
Over the next few months, the Rupert Facility will require minor upgrading and retrofitting to accommodate the production requirements for the company. Equipment for the first production line will start to arrive in late January with commissioning to begin in late February and food production to commence shortly thereafter.
The facility is anticipated to be fully operational in the second quarter of 2021 and capacity will be systematically scaled upwards over the following months.
The Very Good Food Company CEO Mitchell Scott said taking over the Rupert Facility represents the company’s first significant milestone in 2021.
“Over the last couple of years, our ability to meet consumer demand has been restricted due to capacity constraints. The Rupert Facility allows us to increase the availability and reach of our products to consumers not only in Canada, but also in the United States, through both our retail and our eCommerce sales channels,” Scott said.
Commissioning of the Rupert Facility is dependent on, among other things, the mitigation of identified operational risks such as, but not limited to, onboarding the necessary labour and expertise, securing new wholesale relationships and meeting COVID-19 protocols going forward.
The plant-based food company also announced some updates to its executive team on Wednesday. As of January 4, 2021, Ana Silva has started her role with the company as President directly focusing on operations, supply chain and logistics, and procurement to ensure a seamless initial production launch of the Rupert Facility.
Another addition is Kyle Marancos, who has been appointed Director of Marketing with his employment commencing January 18, 2021.
The Very Good Food Company is up 1.99 per cent to C$8.70 per share at 12:28pm EST.
