History repeats itself, or so the saying goes. That’s probably what occurred to Jean-Paul Barré, General Manager of A. Lassonde, when he received a phone call from the owner of Produits Ronald just a few years after the fateful call from the former owner of Breuvages Montclair. The cannery in Saint- Damase, a town about a dozen kilometres away from Rougemont, was on the verge of bankruptcy. Recognizing opportunity when it came knocking, Lassonde bought the debt of the small vegetable cannery and thus was born Lassonde Specialties, as the new company was later christened.

Initially the fledgling subsidiary catered to a very specific niche. In North America, sweet corn, boiled in huge pots and then salted and doused in butter, was the star ingredient of the ever popular summer “corn roast” parties. Meanwhile, canned corn on the cob was a big hit in the Scandinavian countries and, judging from the sales figures, especially favoured by the Finns.

Several years later, the assistant chef at a big hotel in Quebec City contacted Lassonde’s management about canning his own recipe for the broth for fondue chinoise (Chinese hot pot) with a view to selling it to local restaurants. Lassonde countered with an offer to buy his recipe from him and a deal was struck.

In the 1980s, Canton Chinese fondue broth was launched, soon followed by a whole line of fondue sauces – Chinese, Oriental and Bourguignonne. They were a phenomenal success in Quebec. Perhaps it had something to do with eating customs inherited from France, where people enjoy spending many hours at the dining room table. It was only later on that English Canadians and Americans embraced this practice. Taste is also a matter of culture, as we’ve pointed out before!

Next column: In the orchard…