Saskatchewan restaurateur meets with Minister Lynne Yelich

OTTAWA, Nov. 5, 2012 /CNW/ - Saskatchewan business leader Janis Hutton was part of a delegation that met with Hon. Lynne Yelich, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification this week. Hutton - who owns Calories Restaurants in Saskatoon and sits on the Board of Directors for the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association (CRFA) - discussed the province's restaurant industry with Minister Yelich at CRFA's second Restaurant Industry Summit on Parliament Hill, Oct. 29 - 30. Minister Yelich also met with past CRFA chair Doug Stephen, currently President of WOW! Hospitality Concepts Inc. in Winnipeg. They were joined by Winnipeg restaurateurs Joe Grande of Mona Lisa Ristorante Italiano, Leo Groumoutis of Bailey's and Brad Kramble of Salisbury House.

About CRFA's Restaurant Industry Summit
CRFA's Summit brings together prominent leaders from many of Canada's largest restaurant and foodservice companies with federal Members of Parliament. The two-day event aims to raise the profile of CRFA and Canada's restaurant industry in Ottawa.

About Saskatchewan's restaurant industry
With 2,098 units across Saskatchewan, the restaurant industry injects $2 billion into the provincial economy and offers 32,600 jobs.

Note to Editors: Click here for high-resolution photos of the meeting.

Caption: Saskatchewan and Manitoba restaurateurs met with Minister Lynne Yelich to discuss the foodservice industry at CRFA's second Restaurant Industry Summit.
Top photo, left to right: Minister Yelich, Paul Seear, the Minister's Director of Policy, Dwayne Marling, Manitoba-Saskatchewan Vice President for CRFA, Janis Hutton, CRFA Director and owner of Calories Restaurants (Saskatoon), and Joe Grande of Mona Lisa Ristorante Italiano (Winnipeg).
Bottom photo, left to right: Minister Yelich, Seear and Marling.

CRFA is one of Canada's largest business associations, with more than 30,000 members representing restaurants, bars, caterers, institutions and other foodservice providers. Canada's $65-billion restaurant industry employs more than 1.1 million people in communities across the country.

SOURCE: Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association

For further information:

MEDIA CONTACT:  Prasanthi Vasanthakumar, Communications Specialist, 1-800-387-5649, ext. 4254 or [e-mail].