P’tit Québec Supports Saint-Léonard-De-Portneuf’s Community by Transforming Their Church Basement Into a Collective Kitchen

Saint-Léonard-de-Portneuf, Québec – August 8th, 2025 – Lactalis Canada’s P’tit Québec brand is proud to announce the transformation of Saint-Léonard-de-Portneuf’s church basement into a modern, welcoming collective kitchen. This initiative is part of the brand’s “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” program, now in its fifth year, which aims to bring Quebecers together, one small community at a time, and has seen a cumulative investment of over $290,000 since its inception. This year, P’tit Québec, which has been bringing Quebec families together for over 60 years, is helping bring food solidarity to the town by providing the resources needed to transform food donations into home-cooked meals for community members. This major project in Saint-Léonard-de-Portneuf represents P’tit Québec’s largest activation to date, with over $70,000 allocated towards the renovations.

Every year, P’tit Québec’s “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” initiative chooses a small town with a particular need, illustrating how focused initiatives can create substantial community impact. For Saint-Léonard-de-Portneuf, a municipality of approximately 1,180 inhabitants, located 235 km from Montreal, it was the absence of a gathering space and the lack of resource to fully utilize food donations to provide nutritious and shared meals, a reality exacerbated by the rising cost of living.

For generations, Quebec’s church basements have been the heart of small towns, with their basements often serving as essential spaces for community building and gatherings. Yet, lack of funding has sometimes left these spaces to deteriorate, depriving communities of precious meeting points.

“We know that food insecurity is a reality affecting one in five Quebecers, and that food solidarity is therefore a growing priority,” said Gilles Froment, Senior Vice-President of Industry & Government Relations at Lactalis Canada, and President of the International Dairy Federation. “Lactalis Canada’s P’tit Québec brand’s mission extends crafting quality cheeses to bringing people together. By creating this collective kitchen, P’tit Québec aims to offer a space where everyone can learn to cook, share nutritious meals, and ultimately help lighten the burden of food insecurity within the community.”
This new collective kitchen will provide the resources to transform food donations into home-cooked meals, while allowing the community to gather around culinary workshops, and support local projects such as a café-boutique or a community catering service. The kitchen is much more than a physical space; it will allow the citizens to strengthen bonds, and ensure access to quality food for all, from the youngest to the oldest.

Breathe New Life into the Heart of Quebec’s Communities: Submit Your Town to the P’tits Projets pas si P’tits Program!

P’tit Québec is proud to contribute to the vitality of Quebec communities and launches an appeal to all: if you believe your city could benefit from the “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” program and want to see your community prosper, you are invited to submit your municipality. Share a concrete need that affects your local community and explain how P’tit Québec’s “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” program could help bring your community together. The “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” program specifically aims to revitalize key community spaces by adapting to the unique needs of each municipality to promote community gatherings across the province.

To submit your town and discover how “P’tits Projets pas si P’tits” breathes new life into communities, visit: https://ptitquebec.ca/communaute/

 

ABOUT LACTALIS CANADA INC.

With over 140 years of brand heritage, Lactalis Canada is the Canadian dairy leader behind iconic brands Cracker Barrel, Black Diamond, P’tit Québec, Balderson, Cheestrings Ficello, aMOOza!, Astro, Khaas, siggi’s, IÖGO, IÖGO nanö, Olympic, Lactantia, Beatrice, Bfit, Enjoy!, Marie Morin Canada, Galbani, and Président. With more than 30 operating sites including 20 manufacturing facilities, the company and its more than 4000 employees are committed to enriching and nurturing the lives of Canadians through their high-quality products, contribution to communities and partnership with farmers, customers, partners and suppliers. Lactalis Canada is part of Lactalis Group, the world’s leading dairy company, headquartered in Laval, France. For more information, visit www.lactalis.ca

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