Lactalis Canada
European-owned · made in Canada · based in Ontario
Canada's largest dairy company; brands include Black Diamond, Lactantia, Beatrice, Astro, Cracker Barrel, Cheestrings, Balderson, iögo and Olympic.
Toronto, ON CA · www.lactalis.ca
Lactalis Canada is a wholly owned subsidiary of France's family owned Groupe Lactalis, manufacturing entirely in Canada across 20 plants in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta and BC behind Black Diamond, Lactantia, Beatrice, Astro, Cracker Barrel, Cheestrings, Balderson, iögo and Olympic. Its milk and most other inputs are Canadian dairy under supply management, though flavoured yogurt and chocolate milk use some imported fruit and cocoa. Yoplait and Liberté were General Mills' Canadian yogurt brands and went to Sodiaal in a January 2025 split, not to Lactalis, so they are not part of this card.
Factors
Ownership
50.0 reportedEU 100%
Lactalis Canada is a wholly owned subsidiary of Groupe Lactalis, a private, family owned business headquartered in Laval, France and controlled by the Besnier family since its 1933 founding; no Canadian minority stake is documented.
- About us | Lactalis Canada vendor_statement “Lactalis Group is a family-owned global business with over 85,000 employees, 270 operational facilities and a presence in more than 50 countries.”
Manufacturing
100.0 reportedCA 100%
Lactalis Canada's own operations map lists 20 manufacturing plants, all inside Canada, spanning cheese (Belleville, Ingleside, Laverlochere, Mitchell, St. Claude MB, Victoriaville, Winchester), fluid (Brampton, Calgary, Montreal, Winnipeg), cultured (Delta BC, Granby, Lethbridge, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Toronto/Rakely) and dessert (Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville) sites; no plant is located outside Canada. This corrects two guesses in the brief: the map shows no Sudbury or Abbotsford site, listing Delta, BC instead for the BC plant.
- Our Canadian Operations map vendor_statement “01 Belleville, ON ... 24 Victoriaville, QC ... 25 Winchester, ON ... 26 Winnipeg, MB”
- Fast facts | Lactalis Canada vendor_statement “30+ Operating Sites including 20 Manufacturing Plants”
People
100.0 reportedCA 100%
Head office is at 405 The West Mall, Toronto, and the company states 4,000+ Canadian employees across its Canadian sites, with no evidence of staff serving the Canadian business from outside the country.
- Contact us | Lactalis Canada vendor_statement “405 The West Mall, 10th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M9C 5J1”
- About us | Lactalis Canada vendor_statement “our 4000+ strong team boasts a diverse workforce of full-time and part-time employees across our entire supply chain”
Inputs
88.0 inferredCA 85% · other 15%
Canadian dairy is supply-managed, so the milk behind the bulk of the portfolio (plain milk, butter, cream and most cheese) is Canadian; the vendor's own buy-Canadian guide notes that flavoured yogurt and chocolate milk use imported fruit or cocoa alongside domestic ingredients, which this estimate reflects as the smaller OTHER share. No revenue breakdown by product line was found to sharpen the split.
- Lactalis Canada Buy Canadian Grocery Guide (2026) vendor_statement “Made in Canada - This product is made in Canada with domestic and imported ingredients. E.g. Flavoured yogourt or chocolate milk where the fruit or cocoa comes from outside of Canada.”
Where to buy
Grocers
- Search results for "black diamond" – Giant Tiger vendor_statement “Black Diamond Medium Cheddar Cheese Bar, 400g”
- Search results for "lactantia" – Giant Tiger vendor_statement “Lactantia Old Fashioned Cream 35% M.F., 473-ml”
- black diamond cheese | Walmart Canada vendor_statement “Black Diamond Medium Cheddar Cheese Bar, 400g”