truLOCAL

truLOCAL is a Canadian online meat marketplace founded in February 2016 in Kitchener, Ontario by Marc Lafleur and Greg Quaile. Both founders had previously worked at a bulk meat company and saw an opportunity to connect consumers directly with local farmers, producers, and butchers. Lafleur, 29 at the time, had launched two unsuccessful startups before truLOCAL — an instant messaging app and an odd-jobs platform. The meat subscription idea clicked. In 2018, the pair appeared on CBC's Dragon's Den, closing a deal for $100,000 at 10% equity with Michele Romanow. By December 2020, EMERGE Commerce acquired truLOCAL for up to $16.8 million.

Local Meat, Delivered

truLOCAL operates as an online marketplace offering over 350 local meat and seafood products — 100% grass-fed beef, air-chilled chicken, wild-caught sockeye salmon, pork, sausages, and specialty items — all antibiotic-free and hormone-free, sourced from small Canadian farms. Products ship frozen in insulated boxes with dry ice. Farm partners include 3Gen Organics for certified organic pork, VG Meats (a family operation since the 1970s), Springhills Fish in Ontario, and Heritage Cattle Co. Each box arrives with a handwritten meat-related pun, and the staff reportedly never repeats a joke.

Growth and Scale

truLOCAL's revenue increased nearly 3,700% over three years leading into 2020, with the pandemic driving a surge in home delivery demand. The company now serves over 70,000 Canadian customers across Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia with national shipping. truLOCAL Connect enables partner farmers to establish their own online stores through the platform, creating a direct-to-consumer channel for producers who lack e-commerce infrastructure.

Supporting Canadian Farms

Now headquartered in Milton, Ontario, truLOCAL gives Canadians a way to buy meat directly from regional producers — supporting local agriculture, shortening supply chains, and putting higher-quality protein on the table than what typically sits in a grocery store cooler.