The St-Albert Cheese Co-operative is located between Montréal and Ottawa, approximately 10 minutes off Highway 417, in the heart of the community of St-Albert, which has about one thousand inhabitants spread out around a small village core.
St-Albert is part of the La Nation Municipality (more or less 12,000 inhabitants), which itself is part of the United Counties of Prescott and Russell (85,000 inhabitants), a major Franco-Ontarian region. This is one of the most bilingual regions in the country, where 98.9% of the population can express themselves in both official languages, which also happens to be the case at the St-Albert Cheese Co-operative.
If you are planning to visit the cheese factory, check out this link , and be sure to consult the Prescott-Russell Tourism Information Centre Web site to make the most of time here.
Photo: the St-Albert village core
Involvement in the community
The St-Albert Cheese Co-operative is determined to be actively involved in the community through the work of its managers and employees, its willingness to make its facilities available to the public, and its donations in the form of goods and services (for wine and cheese parties, snacks and meals). Over the past few years, it has made significant contributions and provided a great deal of support in time and off-the-books resources.
The St-Albert Cheese Co-operative is financially and actively involved in projects in its municipality, in environmental protection initiatives, in the development of sports, cultural, economic, educational and tourism activities in the region, as well as in organizations that support Ontario’s Francophone communities.
Over the last few years, the Co-op has supported the following organizations and causes:
- Fondation franco-ontarienne
- Hôpital Montfort
- Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario
- Prtection of the South Nation River
- Construction of the tourist information booth in Limoges
- Curd Festival: principal partner
- Village d’antan franco-ontarien: donation of land and funding for feasibility studies and a business plan, and the protection/restoration of two heritage homes
- Écho d’un peuple: financial assistance and support for promotion and revival
- Municipality: financial and material support for projects in the municipality, including upgrades to the outdoor skating rink facilities in the village of St-Albert
- Parish: regular support provided to the parish for its annual financing, and renovation and restoration of the church in St-Albert
- Humanitarian causes: regular support and leadership for fundraising campaigns for people facing severe health or financial difficulties
- Other contributions: annual bursary for the Alfred campus, activities for the next generation of farmers, École élémentaire catholique St-Albert, St-Albert Community Centre, Knights of Columbus, Optimist Club, Cité collégiale, Union des Cultivateurs franco-ontariens, Racing Against Drugs (RCMP), local sports teams, dairy farm instructor, volleyball court, wind power cooperative project, etc.
In addition, the Co-op has actively supported the rescue and revival of AgriEst, which is now an agricultural co-op that is affiliated with La Coop fédérée, which has a point of service in the village of St-Albert.