Our Story

Farm Boy’s History

A 300-square-foot produce store on Cumberland St. in Cornwall, Ontario – that’s where it all started!

Jean-Louis and Colette Bellemare opened the doors to their first modest store in 1981 with one goal in mind: to bring their community the freshest produce possible at the best value.

Well, as it turns out, many people shared the Bellemares’ appreciation and passion for fresh, quality food!

From humble beginnings, to now over 48 fresh market stores and legions of loyal fans across Ontario, we’ve remained dedicated to keeping true to our roots and providing our customers with:

  1. Quality product;
  2. Great value;
  3. Exceptional customer service and;
  4. A wonderful shopping experience.

Fresh produce has always been the heart and soul of our business; our buyers visit local markets to hand-select only the best for you and your family!

But we’re also proud to offer a wide variety of other wholesome and tasty foods for you to enjoy, many of them locally sourced. In our stores, you’ll find butcher-quality meats, fresh seafood, bountiful cheese and deli counters, along with fresh baked goods and convenient chef-prepared dishes.

Our team is constantly testing new products to add to our shelves to meet our customers’ evolving dietary needs and lifestyles. Did you know that we carry hundreds of vegan products? Seriously – over 300 products in the dairy category alone! Not to mention our ever-growing organic and gluten-free selection, too.

At the end of the day, we strive to provide all that you need to prepare delicious, fresh meals.

Because at Farm Boy, we’re all about the food!

Fast Facts

  1. Farm Boy started as a small produce only store in Cornwall, Ontario in 1981.
  2. Today there are 48 Farm Boy stores located throughout Ontario with more stores coming.
  3. Farm Boy carries hundreds of products made in Ontario including fresh produce, butcher quality meats, artisan cheese, fresh dairy and baked goods, sustainable seafood and fresh prepared foods.
  4. All Farm Boy stores feature Farm Boy Kitchens with fresh salad bars and hot bars serving hot and cold breakfast, lunch and dinner options.
  5. Farm Boy stores carry many gluten-free, organic and natural food choices.
  6. Farm Boy makes many of their own products from scratch without preservatives or chemicals including fresh soups, hand made sausages, burgers and kebabs, ready to cook prepared meats.
  7. Farm Boy carries its own line of private label products with hundreds of SKUs.
  8. Local suppliers have been a key feature of Farm Boy stores since 1981 and there are hundreds of local supplier products in store.

Timeline

  • Our first store opened in Cornwall, ON on December 2nd, 1981
  • Nepean store, 1642 Merivale Road Ottawa, ON opened on February 25th, 1996
  • Hillside store – 585 Montreal Road Ottawa, ON opened on May 4th,1997
  • Kanata store – 457 Hazeldean Road Ottawa, ON opened on November 2nd, 1997
  • Farm Boy launched its first private label product, Farm Boy™ Lemon Garlic Dressing, 1998
  • Blossom Park store 2950 Bank Street Ottawa, ON opened on July 10th, 2003
  • Tenth Line Road store, 2030 Tenth Line Road Ottawa, ON opened on December 9th, 2004
  • Barrhaven store, 3033 Woodroffe Avenue Ottawa, ON opened on March 16th, 2006
  • Blue Heron Mall store, 1500 Bank Street Ottawa, ON opened on November 16th, 2006
  • Signature Centre store, 499 Terry Fox Drive Ottawa, ON opened on June 14th, 2007
  • Britannia Plaza store, 1495 Richmond Road Ottawa, ON opened on June 15th, 2011
  • Stittsville store, Crossing Bridge Square, 1250 Stittsville Main Street Ottawa, ON opened on December 2nd, 2011
  • Place d’Orleans Shopping Centre store, 3035 St. Joseph Boulevard Ottawa, ON opened on July 16th, 2012
  • Kingston store, 940 Futures Gate Kingston, ON opened on October 2nd, 2012
  • Train Yards store, 665 Industrial Avenue Ottawa, ON opened on March 14th, 2013
  • Wellington South store, 1045 Wellington Road London, ON opened on June 12th, 2014
  • Masonville store, Fanshawe Park Place, 109 Fanshawe Park Road East London, ON opened on March 12th, 2015
  • Beaverbrook store, 1415 Beaverbrook Avenue London, ON opened on May 7th, 2015
  • Whitby store, Taunton Gardens, 360 Taunton Road East Whitby, ON opened on August 27th, 2015
  • Farm Boy Fresh Zone, Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa, ON opened on October 11th, 2015
  • Fairway store, 385 Fairway Road South Kitchener ON opened on December 3rd, 2015
  • Brantford store, 240 King George Rd. Brantford, ON opened on March 17th, 2016
  • Westboro store, 317 McRae Avenue Ottawa, ON opened on June 23rd, 2016
  • Cambridge, 350 Hespeler Road Cambridge ON opened on September 15th, 2016
  • Pickering store, Pickering Town Centre 1355 Kingston Road Pickering, ON opened on September 29th, 2016
  • Farm Boy celebrated 35 years of business in Cornwall, January 18th, 2017
  • CF Rideau Centre store, 50 Rideau Street Ottawa, ON opened on December 9th, 2017
  • Shoppes of Alderwood (Etobicoke) store, 841 Brown’s Line Toronto, ON opened on March 1st, 2018
  • Harvard Square Plaza store, 801 Mohawk Road West Hamilton, ON opened on March 22nd, 2018
  • Farm Boy joins the Empire Company family of retailers on December, 10th 2018
  • Oakwoods Centre store, 1907 Iron Oak Way, located at the corner of Upper Middle Road West and Joshuas Creek Drive, Oakville, ON opened on December 13th, 2018
  • Leslie & Lakeshore store, 1005 Lake Shore Blvd East Toronto, ON opened on January 31st, 2019
  • Burlington store, 3061 Walkers Line, Burlington, ON opened on December 5th,  2019
  • St. Catharines store, 295 Fourth Avenue West St. Catharines, ON opened on January 30th, 2020
  • Fresh urban concept store, 193 Metcalfe Street Ottawa, ON opened on March 5th, 2020
  • Newmarket store, 18075 Yonge Street Newmarket, ON opened on September 3rd, 2020
  • Toronto – College & Bay, 777 Bay Street Toronto, ON opened on October 1st, 2020
  • Toronto – Yonge & Soudan, 2131 Yonge Street Toronto, ON opened on October 29th, 2020
  • Ottawa – Train Yards (relocation – new flagship store), 830 Belfast Rd Ottawa, ON opened on November 19th, 2020
  • Waterloo, ON – King St. N & Weber St. N , 417 King Street North opened on January 7th, 2021.
  • Toronto, ON – Front & Bathurst, 33 Bathurst Street, opened on January 28th, 2021
  • Richmond Hill, ON- Yonge St. & Silver Maple Rd., 12276 Yonge Street opened on April 8th, 2021
  • Toronto, ON – Harbourfront, 207 Queens Quay West Toronto, ON opened on May 6th, 2021
  • Ottawa, ON – Greenbank, 1581 Greenbank Road opened on May 17, 2021
  • Oakville, ON – Bronte, 2441 Lakeshore Road West, opened on June 24, 2021
  • Toronto, ON – Dundas West & Aukland, 5245 Dundas West, opened on Sept, 16th 2021
  • Toronto, ON – Dupont & Christie, 740 Dupont Street, opened on November 4th, 2021
  • Ottawa, ON – Stittsville (6315 Hazeldean Road) opened after closing our previous Stittsville store (1250 Stittsville Main Street) the night before November 18, 2021.
  • Guelph, ON – 370 Stone Road West, opened on March 3rd, 2022.
  • Barrie, ON – 436 Bryne Dr, Barrie, opened on March 31st, 2022.
  • Toronto, ON – 81 St. Clair Avenue East, opened on November 3, 2022.
  • Aurora, ON – 10 Goulding Avenue, opened on January 19, 2023.
  • Sugar Wharf – 100 Queens Quay East – 2nd Floor, Toronto, ON, opened on February 9, 2023.
  • Oshawa – 1280 Clearbrook Drive, Oshawa, ON, opened on March 14, 2024.
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