Food Processors in the Bay of Quinte Can Last 100 Years
January 26, 2026
And that is true for the Bay of Quinte food processor Sprague Foods. Last summer, the Sprague family celebrated their 100 years in business with an event at one of the many scenic locations in the Bay of Quinte. The beauty of the region – as well as its relaxed lifestyle and cheaper housing – is part of what makes the Bay of Quinte a great place to live.
But the Bay of Quinte has more to offer than quality of life; the region also has a long history of supporting food processing establishments like Sprague Foods along with all the logistics – transportation, warehousing, worker training, and more – the industry needs to operate.
A Long (and Delicious) History in the Bay of Quinte
Sprague Foods is still run by the Sprague family. When it was founded in 1925, it was a seasonal cannery providing products to private labels. The Sprague family, knowing how unstable it is to only sell to other businesses, decided to create their own label and sell directly to consumers. Now, from their Belleville facility, they produce a line of high-quality canned soups, chilis, and beans – free of fillers, gums, and preservatives – found all over North America. They are the only organic soup cannery in Canada.
The key to Sprague Foods’ latest and very successful product line is Rick Sprague, chef, food engineer, and recipe developer at the company. He developed the products and then set out to ensure they were canned in such a way as to not need additives. He invested in the kind of equipment that would preserve the well-balanced flavours. The flavours and textures found in a pot of soup Rick makes in his kitchen are the same textures and flavours when that pot of soup is scaled to 100,000 cans a day.
Rick Sprague’s product line of beans, chilis, and soups were sold successfully in local stores for 10 years. In the last four years, their product has been taken up by major retail chains. Sprague Foods now sells their product in all 10 provinces and all 50 U.S. states.
Readily Available Labour and Raw Material
Of course, any food processor knows that a good product needs good food to start with. The Bay of Quinte supports a strong agricultural sector – the raw material Sprague Foods needs comes right from the region.
A food processor also needs a strong workforce. Labour is easy to find in the Bay of Quinte; the region has a large population, and there are training entities everywhere to make sure all the skills exist that manufacturers need. For example, one of the three Loyalist College graduates that Sprague Foods just hired was from the Supply Chain program.
Learn more about Sprague Foods and how the Bay of Quinte’s Quinte Economic Development Commission supports businesses like them.
