The old adage “the secret is in the sauce” certainly applies to the Freddy brand line of products that Lassonde produced as a contract manufacturer in the late 1960s. The secret of Lassonde’s new found success, however, lay above all in the glass.

The Company’s purchase of Breuvages Montclair was having a positive impact once again. Lassonde could now bring products to market in both metal and glass containers. And that led directly to the lucrative contract to produce Freddy brand pizza and spaghetti sauces, which were very popular in Quebec at the time.

But this profitable contract manufacturing arrangement required a major investment. A large extension was added on to the Rougemont cannery. All the equipment needed to produce Freddy sauces was installed in compliance with the conditions and standards of the “Canada approved” certification that was essential for processing the meat used in the sauces.

This contract has a special significance in Lassonde’s history. Yvon Martin, one of the Company’s longest serving employees, now retired, remembers: “I had already been working at the plant seasonally for four of five years when Willie Lassonde said to me, ‘Listen, you need to come and work here full time. We’re going to have work this year. I’ll loan you my trailer so you can live there next to the plant.’” The production of Freddy sauces continued for nearly 10 years before it was discontinued, and it was this contract that allowed the Company to make the move from seasonal to year-round production.

Next column: A winning campaign…