History

History

It’s All About Family

The founding generation

Aliments ASTA is a second-generation family-run business founded in 1982 under the bold initiative of Jacques Poitras, an intrepid man of vision.

Persistent, farsighted and a natural-born entrepreneur, Jacques Poitras acquired a slaughterhouse in Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska and restarted its commercial activities on February 15, 1982.

This is how Abattoir Saint-Alexandre (1982) Inc. came into being, which later evolved into Aliments ASTA, after several expansion and modernization projects.

The rising generation

Today, Stéphanie and Kévin Poitras ensure the succession while their father still serves as the head of the business, and as their advisor and mentor.

“One must not wait too long before passing the torch. The ownership transfer must be done gradually. My children evolved within the company, they performed each and every task. They know the business well; they understand its structure and share its values. And now, I help them along their progression”, says Mr. Poitras.

Stéphanie Poitras, general manager, and her brother Kévin, development and swine operations manager, are the future of this successful business, an acknowledged world leader in the primary pork processing industry.

They are perpetuating their father’s original vision, to which they add their own personal touch while dreaming big in terms of development and market positioning.

 

From generation to generation

From its early days to the present, Aliments ASTA has pursued major development and certification projects, which have positioned the company among the most productive primary pork processing plants in Canada.

  • Acquisition of a 50% stake in Isoporc, one of Quebec’s major hog producers, which includes a mill in Saint-Hugues.

  • Implementation of optimized production processes (Lean Manufacturing) for continuous improvement

  • Purchase of swine nurseries and construction of the Nandcel farm, an advanced nursery with a capacity of 2400 group-housed gestating sows.
  • Acquisition and construction of two new group-housed gestation nurseries, the Armstrong and Marente farms.

  • Safe Quality Food certification with regards to food quality and safety standards

  • Implementation of the new computerized production management system