Prep your french fries and Kraft Dinner — Canadian-made Heinz ketchup is back on the menu.
The Kraft Heinz Co. announced Tuesday that most of the company’s ketchup sold in Canada will be manufactured at a plant in Montreal starting next summer. The new operation line is expected to produce over 100 million pounds of ketchup for Canadians within the first two years, according to Heinz.
That’s a lot of burgers.
“Kraft Heinz Canada is pleased to partner with the Quebec Government on this investment in bringing ketchup production back to Canada from the U.S.,” says Kraft Heinz Canada president Bruno Keller in a news release. “Through our partnership with Quebec and increased efficiencies at our Mont Royal facility, it became possible to return this iconic product back to Canada for Canadians at this time.”
It’s been six years since Heinz’s version of the condiment has been produced on Canadian soil. The company moved production from its Leamington, Ont. plant to the U.S. in 2014. This sparked a ketchup war, when rival French’s started promoting its product as made with Canadian tomatoes, even purchasing tomato paste from the Leamington plant that used to process the Heinz ketchup.
Many people took to social media in ensuing years declaring their ketchup allegiance as a political statement.
Now, Canadians will have two domestic options to choose from — so the war will have to come down simply to taste.
According to Heinz, the new plant won’t start processing Canadian tomatoes for a few years, due to existing agreements with U.S. tomato paste suppliers. The new production line is expected to create 30 new jobs and help maintain approximately 750 more at the Montreal facility.