Working at Cardinal

At the heart of it, the legacy of Cardinal is a story of people.

The story of Cardinal is that of a highly entrepreneurial and principled enterprise built on a set of core values that have guided the Cator family and their company over the course of half a century.

Founder Ralph Cator was passionate about building a company that provided the opportunity for employees to experience personal growth and follow their dreams. Today, under the leadership of son Brent Cator, Cardinal continues to provide opportunities within a culture of empowerment and respect.

President and Owner of Cardinal Meat Specialists, Brent Cator leads a dedicated team focused on being Canada’s leading burger and sealed environment cooked protein manufacturer. Operating two plants with one in Mississauga, ON and the other in Brampton, ON, Cardinal supplies top restaurateurs and major retailers with a range of meat products, with an emphasis on quality, consistency, and food safety.

Brent’s grandfather started the Cator family in the meat business over 90 years ago, and his father, Ralph Cator, started Cardinal Meats Specialists in 1966. Brent has worked at Cardinal for 32 years, learning every aspect of the business along the way. His training and experiences in all facets of the company have provided a well-rounded view and has provided many insights into what makes it successful. It is his goal to create and deliver products that exceed customers’ expectations and set the bar for the North American marketplace. In 2013, we launched our brand promise “You Can With Cardinal,” which emphasizes our company’s commitment to our customers, our team, and the industry.

Brent is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario. He has always placed a high importance on continuing education for the entire company, and has completed numerous courses including those at the Wharton School of Business and the Richard Ivey School (Leading Entrepreneurial Program).

A cornerstone of Cardinal’s success is innovation. The Company attributes much of its growth to its industry-leading approach to food safety and innovation. Brent is proud of Cardinal’s many accomplishments including being the first Canadian beef processor to receive the HACCP designation, and the first to utilize DNA lab technology for microbiology. Innovative thinking led to the creation of patented equipment that has streamlined the manufacturing processes, and the development of our fully cooked technology that produces market-leading products for Canadian and U.S. foodservice operators and consumers. Brent’s passion extends to many industry initiatives. His belief has always been that food safety is not a competition and that working together to improve food safety standards will only result in a stronger/healthier industry. With this in mind, Brent has invested and developed unique technologies for cooked proteins, served on a North American E-Coli task force, and represented the processing industry on a Canadian Food Inspection Agency task force that focused on best practices and regulatory changes for a safer food supply in Canada. Brent is a regular contributor to national magazines where he shares his findings on leading edge technologies and advancements.

Brent is a past-President of the North American Meat Processors (now North American Meat Institute) and has actively been involved in Canadian Association of Family Enterprise (CAFÉ) for many years.

Cardinal Culture - The way we do things around here

Innovative technologies are a cornerstone of the company culture. Cardinal’s collaborative and open environment encourages people in all departments to bring forward ideas - many times leading to the development of new products and processes. The approach to innovation is a direct reflection of a company culture that enables employees to take risks and take ownership.

“I love working at Cardinal. Cardinal keeps your mind always working. Something is always new. People are amazing and everyone helps each other. You are never alone. Your always have somebody behind you helping you out.”

The Cardinal Philosophy

Cardinal’s Philosophy and Core Values actively guide ‘The way we do things around here’.

Cardinal Meat Specialists exists to serve the needs of its customers.

• We aim to be the premier supplier of products and services, which our customers perceive to be of consistent high quality.
• We will charge a fair price for our goods and services.
• We will maintain good communications between ourselves and our customers.
• We will respond quickly and effectively to our customers’ needs and wants.
• We will constantly seek better ways to serve our customers.
• We will strive to lead our industry in the generation of useful innovation and in productivity

Cardinal Meat Specialists strives to maintain an environment, which will attract, retain and motivate the best people possible.

• We will foster a climate that will allow employees to perform to their fullest potential.
• We will provide employees with the opportunity to achieve job and financial security, advancement within Cardinal, recognition of achievement and reward for performance.
• We will seek to maintain safe functional and attractive physical facilities.

Cardinal Meat Specialists firmly believes in teamwork.

• We will encourage all employees to work together harmoniously and to help each other be successful.
• We will assist employees in developing plans to achieve their goals and in relating those personal goals with the achievement of group and company goals.

Honesty and integrity will be the cornerstones of all our dealings with customers, employees, suppliers and the public.

By doing these things in a professional, planned manner, we expect to generate a fair profit and to remain a healthy growth company.

Servant Leadership

Servant Leadership is a leadership philosophy and a hallmark of the Cardinal Culture.

Servant leaders empower their work teams and give back to their employees, turning the traditional leadership pyramid upside down. Instead of people working to serve the leader, the leader exists to inspire and equip the people they influence.

“Cardinal is Servant Leadership at its best.”

Skip Torresson

Cardinal Meats is working for you!

Cardinal’s roots are in a family business and it still maintains its family- friendly feel, recognizing employees as stakeholders and valuing their development.

Below are some of the ways Cardinal Meats is working for you!

• Employee discounted sales for Cardinal delicious products
• Monthly barbecues / pizza lunches
• The annual dinner dance- a formal event
• Cardinal’s Charity of Choice Fundraisers
• President’s Awards Dinner for 5 year + employees

Cardinal values employee input and offers many opportunities for shared two-way dialogue including:

• Town Hall discussions and Focus Through Communication meetings
• Monthly Q and A meetings for the Production employees
• Bi-annual Staff meetings – align with the company vision
• Performance Reviews- to discuss your progress, goals and dreams
• Open Door Policy

A comprehensive benefit package supports Cardinal’s commitment to provide a culture where employees can make their best possible contribution:

• Employee Assistance program
• Education Assistance
• Health and Dental benefits
• Paid Birthday Day off

Our Core Values

Cardinal Meat Specialist Joint Health and Safety Committee

Safety Policy 2020

Cardinal Meat Specialists Limited is committed to providing a safe, healthy work environment for its employees.

The prevention of accidents, injuries and occupational illness will be integrated into all aspects of every work activity at Cardinal.

To achieve this objective:

• Cardinal’s Joint Health & Safety Committee has the full support and participation of Senior Management of the company. It represents all Cardinal employees and is responsible to oversee workplace inspections; analyze, discuss and make recommendations on all health and safety issues.
• All managers and supervisory personnel are responsible to provide a safe workplace as well as to control and/or eliminate hazards due to occupational or environmental conditions.
• All managers and supervisory personnel are responsible for the provision of adequate protective equipment, tools and devices and for the development of work procedures which will ensure employee safety.
• All employees will follow the Safety Rules and bring any unsafe conditions to the attention of a Supervisor or Joint Health and Safety Committee member. Safety is a team responsibility and it is up to everyone to lookout for the safety of themselves and their co-workers.
• All managers and supervisory personnel will provide employees with adequate introduction and training programs so that all Cardinal employees are qualified to perform their job safely.

Together, we will comply with the spirit & intent of Ontario’s Occupational Health & Safety Act.

Together, we will build a shared sense of responsibility for safety.

Together, we will strive to attain our goal.

Brent Cator
President

Testimonials

“It’s very important in production to have people with knowledge around you. It makes you confident knowing they have your back. I feel very comfortable in this place. We have a very strong bond. There is a special Cardinal dna of people helping each other in their jobs.”

“Cardinal is almost like an extended family.”

“Cardinal is big on self-development. Brent always said ‘if someone wants to do something else, talk to your supervisor, manager or me.’ I used to pack burgers and now as National Account Manager I look after the largest foodservice distributor in North America. My own path, like so many others here, is a testament to the Cardinal culture.”

“I came to Cardinal only for a few months to get a first job in Canada and here I am over 25 years later. The Cator family established the standard that nobody is afraid to talk to Brent or Ralph. There is always an open door here. They create the opportunity for the employees. Everybody here feels that they are part of the success of the company.”

Current Opportunities