Government of Canada announces funding to help build Brandon economy

Projects announced today build on Brandon's strengths, support regional prosperity, and help advance Canada's economic sovereignty

BRANDON, MB, April 2, 2026 /CNW/ - Businesses and communities in Manitoba and across Canada are navigating a more uncertain economic environment. In response, the Government of Canada is focused on what it can control: building strength at home. That includes supporting innovation, skills development, business expansion and homebuilding through strategic federal investments that are helping Prairie communities grow, adapt and contribute to a stronger Canadian economy.

Government of Canada announces funding to help build Brandon economy (CNW Group/Prairies Economic Development Canada)

Today at Assiniboine College, Ginette Lavack, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services and Member of Parliament for St. Boniface – St. Vital, Manitoba, on behalf of the Honourable Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada, announced over $7.1 million in federal support for six Brandon-based projects.

This funding will help local businesses and institutions innovate, expand production, strengthen regional supply chains, and build workforce capacity in sectors that matter to Manitoba and to Canada.

Some of these projects include:

• Assiniboine College will support mechatronics adoption and skilled labour growth for Manitoba's agriculture sector through the renovation of an existing facility to house a new Mechatronics Engineering Technology program. This represents a federal investment of $2,250,000.
• Bushel Plus Ltd. (Soon to be BranValt) will increase prairie-made agri-technology exports to boost global competitiveness. This represents a federal investment of more than $577,000.
• Greenstone Building Products Ltd. will enhance their manufacturing capacity to produce cold-formed steel framing components to complement their Insulated Composite Envelope (ICE) Panel product line for the Canadian homebuilding market. This represents a federal investment of more than $1 million.

A full listing of all of today's announced projects can be found in the linked backgrounder.

These projects build on Brandon's pre-existing strengths, support regional prosperity, and help advance Canada's economic sovereignty by supporting innovation, growing local businesses, and creating good jobs.

Quotes

"Businesses and communities in Manitoba and across Canada are navigating a more uncertain economic environment. That's why Canada's new government is focused on building strength at home through strategic investments in innovation, skills development, business expansion and homebuilding. In Prairie communities, those investments are helping local economies grow, adapt and contribute to a stronger Canadian economy."
–The Honourable Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada

"These investments reflect the strength and potential of Brandon, where resilience and agricultural roots run deep. By supporting local manufacturers, small businesses and workforce training, the Government of Canada is proud to help Brandon businesses grow, adapt and compete, while creating more opportunities for people across Westman."
–Ginette Lavack, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services and Member of Parliament for St. Boniface – St. Vital, Manitoba

"The support Greenstone has received from PrairiesCan has enabled us to acquire new building technologies to launch our Cold Formed Steel product line and enter new markets. The roll former, cranes, and interior fit up of our 47,000 square foot expansion will provide the space and capacity needed to innovate, test, and launch the CFS product line. This investment allows us to bring the product to market without the initial financial pressures that often constrain early-stage development. Programs like this truly make innovation possible. Without them, many good ideas simply wouldn't have the opportunity to grow. We're deeply grateful and excited to get to work and demonstrate the impact this investment will help create."
–Tilda Fortier, Business Manager, Greenstone Building Products Ltd.

"Our Mechatronics program is designed to meet the needs of the rapidly evolving manufacturing, processing and food development sectors in Manitoba. Ensuring there are skilled, trained people ready to enter jobs in modern manufacturing and industrial automation environments is critical to the future of the Manitoba economy. We are grateful to PrairiesCan for this investment, which allows us to ensure industry has the talent they need to be competitive in international markets."
–Mark Frison, President, Assiniboine College

Quick facts

• Funding announced today flows through PrairiesCan's Regional Innovation Ecosystems program (RIE), Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI), Community Economic Development and Diversification program (CEDD) and Regional Homebuilding Innovation Initiative (RHII).
• Brandon is Manitoba's second largest city, with an urban population of over 51,000 and growing at a rate of 1.5% per year (according to Canadian Census data).

Backgrounder

The projects announced today build on Brandon's strengths, support regional prosperity, and help advance Canada's economic sovereignty by scaling up innovation, attracting investment, and creating high-paying jobs.

The supported projects include:

PrairiesCan announced non-repayable contributions in support of a project through CEDD:

• Brandon Downtown Development Corporation (Brandon, MB) is assisting small and medium-sized businesses by delivering an incentive program to help mitigate the impact of continued economic challenges, including through connecting businesses with a professional service provider to provide targeted consulting and advisory services. ($400,000)

PrairiesCan announced repayable contributions in support of a project through RHII:

• Greenstone Building Products Ltd. (Brandon, MB) is enhancing manufacturing capacity for structural components in the homebuilding industry, including through the expansion of their manufacturing facility, and acquisition and installation of new equipment. ($1,088,700)

PrairiesCan announced non-repayable contributions in support of a project through RIE:

• Assiniboine College (Brandon, MB) is supporting mechatronics adoption and skilled labour growth for Manitoba's agriculture sector through the renovation of an existing facility to house a new Mechatronics Engineering Technology program. ($2,250,000)

PrairiesCan announced non-repayable contributions in support of 2 projects through RTRI:

• Behlen Industries LP (Brandon, MB) is boosting their global competitiveness through the automation of their steel welding line, increasing production. Project Phase 1 ($1,000,000)
• Bushel Plus Ltd. (Soon to be BranValt) (Brandon, MB) is boosting their global competitiveness through the development and deployment of new Harvest Management applications and a machinery attachment, using Canadian steel and aluminum. ($577,500)

PrairiesCan announced repayable contributions in support of one project through RTRI:

• Behlen Industries LP (Brandon, MB) is boosting their global competitiveness through the automation of their steel welding line, increasing production. Project Phase 2 ($1,860,818)

Associated links

• Prairies Economic Development Canada
• Regional Economic Growth through Innovation (REGI) in the Prairie provinces
• Regional Innovation Ecosystems (RIE) in the Prairie provinces
• Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) in the Prairie provinces
• Community Economic Development and Diversification (CEDD) in the Prairie provinces
• Regional Homebuilding Innovation Initiative (RHII) in the Prairie provinces

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SOURCE Prairies Economic Development Canada

Contacts: Soraya Lemur, Press Secretary, Office of the Hon. Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada, [email protected], 343-574-6781; Chris Minaker, Director, Policy, Planning and External Relations, Prairies Economic Development Canada, [email protected]