Diversification Sanimal continued to expand its recovery network between 1991 and 2004, a period of growth during which it purchased another 35 collectors, mainly in Quebec and Ontario. The company also began to develop niche markets by processing new material in ways that added value. In 1993, Sanimal and US company APC Nutrition of Iowa formed a joint enterprise in Canada to process blood into various products, including a high-quality, easily digestible form of protein that was in high demand in export markets, particularly in fish farms. Plasma was even more valuable as an immunity booster that promoted growth and reduced the death rate among young, recently-weaned livestock. The new plant proved to be so successful that Sanimal set up a second facility in 1999 in Calgary, in the heart of Canada’s beef market. The company invested $14 million to build the new plant with its partner, Vancouver-based renderer West Coast Reduction, after signing a majority ownership contract and securing the volume of blood needed to run the plant at full capacity. In 1994, Sanimal began to de-bone cow carcasses and process hides and poultry viscera for canning. In 1996, the renderer offered to process slaughterhouse wastewater sludge at its Montreal plant, recovering fats and proteins that would eventually create a combustible product used at the company’s biomass generation station at Charny. To help expand its niche markets, Sanimal first contracted with, and then eventually purchased Bi-Pro Marketing in Guelph, Ontario. This move propelled Sanimal into the pet food market. Challenges in the New Millennium As the world entered into a new century, the Couture family was reeling in shock. A golf fanatic and sportsman, Murray Sr. was careful about what he ate, saw his doctor regularly, and cherished his good health that allowed him to stay active. However, nothing could have prepared the Couture family for his death from a heart attack on March 31, 2000, at his home in Florida at the age of 67. Despite the sadness and dismay, the sudden transfer of responsibility to the third generation had relatively little impact on the family business. Murray Sr. had been careful to plan his succession at Sanimal well in advance, and his sons André and Martin were already firmly in control of the business, supported by an experienced board of directors and a strong management team. The new millennium also brought about new challenges with BSE in Europe, where beef protein was banned in animal feed in 2001, hitting Sanimal hard. André’s frequent travels to Europe gave him insight into the evolving situation so he could prepare the company for possible changes, which would come after Canada discovered the disease in May 2003. All of Canada’s borders were immediately closed to animal byproducts. Sanimal found itself with, among other problems, 18,000 metric tons of animal fat in tanks scheduled for export to China and Africa. The situation was even worse at its blood processing facilities; the collection and processing of beef blood was now prohibited. The renderer quickly found itself stockpiling enormous quantities of products that could not be exported or sold. Eventually, the federal government would assist beef producers and let enterprises further down the chain “do their jobs.” For a time, some Sanimal bone meal was sent to landfill and the company was forced to begin charging slaughterhouses and farmers for collection. In time, the credibility of the company and Andre’s foresight of segregating production helped Sanimal weather the storm, re-establishing operations within three weeks. Shortly after the BSE crisis, another acquisition opportunity in the United States arose. The Meyer family, owners of the Anamax rendering plant in Green Bay, WI, had been meeting with the Coutures for a while and finally accepted a proposal by André that would allow the Meyers to remain as minority shareholders. The transaction was finalized in January 2006 and the Meyer family turned the page after five generations. Sanimal and Anamax were consolidated under the name Sanimax and the Coutures became owners of three new plants: a beef products plant in Green Bay, which processed similar volumes as Sanimal’s plants; a plant in South St. Paul, MN, which also processed chicken by-products; and a plant in De Forest, WI, which processed used cooking oil and eventually produced biodiesel. The company continued to penetrate the US market from 2006 to 2008, with a number of acquisitions to secure its supply of raw material over an immense territory: Inland Products in Ohio; Kendallville Fertilizer Co. and Environmental Bio-Fuels Technologies, both in Indiana; and A&A Grease Services and U.S. Proteins and Oil in Detroit, MI. Despite the growth, Sanimax faced another BSE challenge in 2007 when the Canadian government regulated specified risk material, such as bovine brain and spinal tissue, stipulating that these products be separated from other by-products. Although the rendering industry did not support this new regulation, with government assistance, Sanimax created a new production line for these specific by-products at its Charny plant. The fats produced from these by-products could only be sold under certain conditions, but meals and proteins could not and, until 2012, were landfilled. The commissioning of the Charny biomass plant in 2012 made it possible to use these products to produce steam and ash, which could be used as fertilizer. Taking a broad view of recycling, Sanimax launched a program to recover the energy contained in organic waste of all kinds, collecting expired products from a major retail chain in the United States. A similar approach is currently being implemented with a Canadian chain. And the Story Continues Although family ownership of rendering companies is now becoming the exception, the third generation of Coutures – André, Julie, and Martin – are committed to creating a sense of belonging among the fourth generation by educating them in family history and encouraging them to make their own choices about their future. While still young and keenly interested in the world around them and the experiences it offers, they are no strangers to the family business. The initial $3,000 investment made by Alex and Déziel in 1939 has led, 75 years later, to a company of international standing. The Couture family’s need to innovate and diversify into specialized and novel areas has kept the company at the forefront of the rendering industry. Sanimax continues to move forward and grow while being respectful of environmental issues and remaining faithful to the pioneering spirit of Alex. R www.rendermagazine.com Render April 2014 23
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