FedDev Ontario investment of more than $20 million supports eight London and Chatham-Kent region businesses and organizations to modernize operations and strengthen competitiveness
May 15, 2026 - London, Ontario
London and Chatham-Kent regions are economic engines of Southwestern Ontario-driven by manufacturing, automotive, life sciences, and agri-food sectors. As global trade pressures persist, the Government of Canada is investing to strengthen resilience, boost competitiveness, and create good jobs.
Today, the Honourable Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), visited The Grove. Western Fair Association's agri-food business and innovation hub accelerates food and beverage companies through incubation, scale-up support, and commercialization. The Minister was joined by Peter Fragiskatos, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship and Member of Parliament for London Centre, and the Honourable Arielle Kayabaga, Deputy House Leader of the Government and Member of Parliament for London West.
While there, the Minister announced an investment of more than $20 million to support eight businesses and organizations impacted by trade disruptions, including AarKel Tool & Die Inc., Atlantic Industries Limited, Attica Manufacturing Inc., Five Star Tool and Die Ltd., Ritch-Meyer Machine & Tool Inc., Select Finishing, Starlim North America Corporation and Western Fair Association.
This funding, through the Regional Tariff Response Initiative, will support projects that improve efficiency, adopt new technologies, and expand growth opportunities, benefiting businesses in southwestern Ontario, and create good jobs. For information on the individual projects, refer to the backgrounder.
As part of today's announcement, Western Fair Association is receiving $8million to expand and modernize its Grove Innovation Hub. This new investment builds on FedDev Ontario's previous investment of $8.2 million, which helped establish and grow The Grove as a cornerstone of the region's agri-food innovation ecosystem. Building on that foundation, Grove 2.0 will address the needs of agri-food SMEs for scaleready production and cold storage, helping tariff-impacted firms diversify markets, strengthen supply chains, and support a more resilient regional economy.
The Government of Canada is committed to supporting Canadian businesses and organizations, safeguarding workers, and strengthening competitiveness, economic resilience, and longterm prosperity across the country.
