More than 80 years of growth, backed by a strong family heritage
Founded in 1939, Sanimax is a family-owned company that has spanned generations and borders. Over the years, the Sanimax has been backed by trusted business partners who support the company’s innovative vision and pride in a job well done.
With more than 2,500 employees serving over 25,000 clients in 4 countries in the Americas, Sanimax has a bright future ahead!
An evolving industry
Closely linked to the agricultural industry from its very beginning, Sanimax has adapted to a world undergoing constant changes. We have experienced remarkable growth that has allowed us to expand our services in different industries: animal nutrition, catering, food retail and much more.
We are proud to be an American leader in rendering, and we continue to search for effective solutions that respond to the challenges of an increased global population and growing demands on the agri-food industry.
We have managed to diversify our business by exploring specialized and innovative markets. Three generations later, and soon to be four, we are still guided by our original mission and passion: to reclaim, renew and return to build a greener future.
A few pivotal moments in our history
The foundation
Brothers Alex and Déziel Couture, both familiar with the transformation of meat by-products and rendering techniques, founded Couture Enr. They built a plant in the Saint-Malo neighbourhood of Québec, close to the city’s slaughterhouses.
Rise of the Second World War
The early days of the company were both modest and challenging. With the start of the war, the plant saw some success due to a high demand for the production of glycerine, which was used to make bombs. It was the start of a growing business!
Growth in Québec
During the 1970s, Murray, the son of Alex - one of the co-founders, set the stage for a second wave of expansion for the company, which was now called Alex Couture Inc. Murray consolidated the Québec market by acquiring all of the smaller rendering plants located in the east region of Trois-Rivières. He moved the plant to an ultra-modern facility in Lévis (Charny). The volume of organic materials increased at a rate of approximately 10% per year. Five years after opening, the site had reached its capacity limit.
A leader in Québec
After many failed attempts, Alex Couture Inc. purchased a major competitor from Montréal. The acquisition of the Rivière-des-Prairies plant doubled the size of the company, which has represented 85% of the Québec market ever since.
The third generation
Thérèse and Murray Sr.’s five children joined the family business. Murray Jr., Hélène, André, Julie and Martin were each, in their own way, a part of the company’s evolution.
Expansion into Ontario and the United States
In the 1990s, the company became Sanimal and expanded beyond Québec with the acquisition of a plant in Toronto and a bio-food products brokerage firm in Guelph.
In 2005, the group also branched into the United States with the purchase of two facilities in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Sanimal continued to expand its recovery network between 1991 and 2004 - a period of significant growth for the company with a total 35 new acquisitions.
A new company name
In January 2005, the group merged with Anamax, a five-generation family-run rendering business in Green Bay, Wisconsin. It was at this point that Sanimal became Sanimax.
Preparing for succession
Martin, André and Julie are members of the Executive Board. The three siblings are the sole owners of the family business and have decided to prepare for their nine children to take over. They designed a welcoming office space to ensure the values of Alex Couture, the original founder, would be passed on to the next generation.
The future is green
Sanimax maintains a competitive edge by constantly offering new, improved and increasingly eco-friendly products and services for its clientele. As the technology becomes more advanced, and data is more accessible than ever, the opportunities for operational optimization are endless.
Dive deeper into our history, check out our memory book (published in 2014)
