Pork and poultry packer, Olymel, plans to spend about $2.2 million on major renovations at two of its Quebec poultry processing plants, according to Country Guide.

Olymel said on 22 June that it will spend about $1.76 million at Ste-Rosalie, about 40 kilometres to the south-west of Drummondville, to expand and renovate its deboning and further processing plant.

The project, which is expected to begin shortly for completion by October, is expected to improve product flow between the 'raw' and 'cooked' sections of the facility. It is also expected to eliminate a source of exterior noise, making for a calmer environment within the plant, Olymel said.

The renovations will also include a new dry storage area, a new unloading and unpacking area for meat and a new packaging room for cooked products. A new separate space for the machinery and welding workshops is also planned.

The remaining $500,000 will go toward dedicated storage space for cartons of chicken breasts within the dry warehousing area at Olymel's slaughter and cutting facility at St-Damase, about 20 kilometres south-west of Ste-Rosalie.

The renovations at St-Damase are to begin at the end of June and are expected to be complete by mid-September, the company said.

Olymel noted that is has renewed equipment at the plant to improve the flow of production at the plant, which supplies fresh poultry to various buyers and also feeds the Ste-Rosalie plant.

Ste-Rosalie, in turn, operates two shifts seven days a week, making cooked and frozen products including breasts and wings for sale under the company's own Flamingo and Olymel brands as well as for private-label customers.