Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a key role to play in ensuring Quebec’s economy makes the environmental transition. They seek to innovate and grow by becoming more competitive in a greener world. That is why Annie Koutrakis, Member of Parliament for Vimy and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED), on behalf of the Honourable Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for CED, is announcing a $1M repayable contribution for Pro Pals Industries Ltd. (Pro Pals).

Thanks to this CED support, the business will increase its production capacity, competitiveness and environmental performance by expanding its current facilities. CED’s support will also enable the SME to acquire and install digital equipment for plastic production and recycling such as extruders, a cooling system, a cutting system, a sorting robot, silos, and production software.

Founded in 1978, Pro Pals is an SME that manufactures flexible plastic packaging for the food, pharmaceutical, horticultural, construction and other industries. With over 40 years of experience in the field, Pro Pals has built a reputation for its ability to provide innovative ideas and solutions to respond to clients’ needs for flexography and flexible packaging. The SME does not hesitate to invest in the most recent technological advances to reduce the environmental impact of its operations, including to reintegrate Category 4 used plastics into its production cycle.

A sustainable, just, and more inclusive recovery relies, among other things, on businesses making the green shift. The Government of Canada supports SMEs by fostering sustainable development across all Quebec regions. Adapted programs and services are available to accelerate the implementation of innovative projects, the adoption of clean technologies, and the development of greener products. In this way, CED is providing concrete assistance for Quebec’s businesses, entrepreneurs, and workers to better position themselves and seize opportunities arising out of an economy in transition.

“Our company Pro Pals, a Laval-based manufacturer of flexible packaging, has taken up the challenge to integrate the collection, oversorting, recycling, and reuse of post-consumer polyethylene film (#4) into its operations,” said Ludovic Leplatois, Eng., M.Sc., Vice-President Technologies & Innovations, Pro Pals. “This is a wonderful concrete example of what can be called the ‘expanded responsibility of the packaging supplier.’ Our innovative program is called ‘La route du plastique’. We already count as proud partners the SAQ, Pelican International, Lion Electric, Airbus, and many others. We are pleased to be “totally wrapped up” in our circular economy project and are looking forward to showing everyone in Quebec what can be done to manage plastic waste.”