History

23 year old Isaac VanWestenbrugge borrowed $300 from his older brother Martin and started the business delivering butter and eggs.

The company introduced their first motorized delivery truck. Products and goods were kept cool and covered by canvas.

16 year-old Ben Gordon begins working for Issac unloading margarine, candling eggs, bookkeeping, washing windows, and sweeping floors.

Issac VanWestenbrugge retires, and Ben and Frank Gordon reorganize and rename the corporation Gordon Food Service. Ben and Frank form the Mancelona Cheese Company to manufacture Gordon-brand Colby cheese.

Paul Gordon becomes president and John Gordon is named secretary/treasurer.

Since the '60s, Gordon Food Service grew in the United States expanding to cover a large majority of the Midwest. Company sales reach $ 1 billion in 1994 - a single year record. Gordon Food Service entered Canada in 1994 with the purchase of two divisions of Maple Leaf Foodservice in Ontario.

This same year, GFS Canada expands to become second largest food distributor in Canada.

Haney Greenwood, created in the mid-1950s by Bob Haney and Sid Greenwood, was a frozen food distributor servicing grocery stores, restaurants, and institutions. In 1975, Mr. Haney sold his shares of the business to Mr. Greenwood, who passed on the business to his sons.

In 1984, the companies of Finlay Foods and Haney Greenwood had merged to become Finlay Greenwood, a company servicing chain businesses across Ontario and independent street business in the Toronto, Hamilton, and Niagara regions. In 1996, Finlay Greenwood became a part of GFS Canada in Ontario bringing with it an extensive history.

In January 1996, Distal merged with GFS Canada. This doubled GFS Canada’s business to make it the second largest foodservice distributor in the province of Quebec. However, above all, Distal would be joining a company whose long-standing values of sharing and commitment to integrity mirrored those of its own.

In addition to foodservice, Distal created its very own non-profit foundation in 1994. This foundation’s primary goal is to give support to children afflicted with illnesses and to those that are poverty stricken.

GFS Canada celebrates 100 years of service.

With a sales office in Red Deer, redistribution centers in Regina and Saskatoon, and distribution centers in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg, Bridge Brand's service area extends across eastern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and into northern Ontario and as far north as Yellowknife and Whitehorse in the NWT. Over 800 team members are totally committed to providing the utmost in customer service.

January 2002 marked a new beginning with a new family at the helm as Bridge Brand was purchased by GFS Canada. Bridge Brand is proud to be a strong part of the GFS Canada national team and will continue to be a major competitive force in the industry with traditional core values and a high level of integrity.

Over the years, Neptune Food Service has grown from a handful of employees to over 700 people servicing customers. By 2002, Neptune was a leading distributor in the BC marketplace. GFS Canada and Neptune then joined forces to cover the west coast of Canada, servicing all of British Columbia.

The drive to provide national coverage led to the building of a new state-of-the-art facility in Amherst, Nova Scotia. The existing base of business, great culture and solid management of M & seemed like a great fit for GFS Canada. On June 20, 2003, GFS Canada formally acquired M & S Foodservice, Inc. completing an entirely national coast-to-coast service area.

In the summer of 2004 the Delta warehouse expansion was complete. Learn about our coast-to-coast service area.

GFS Edmonton starts to ship product from their newly built facility. Learn about our coast-to-coast service area.

GFS Winnipeg starts to ship product from their newly built facility. Learn about our coast-to-coast service area.

As part of our goal to work as one company, all offices officially changed their names to Gordon Food Service and adopted the GFS Canada logo.

GFS British Columbia was a top provider for the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games.

GFS Canada enters into a partnership with Habitat for Humanity Canada with a goal to build one house a year over the next 8 years.