The Secret Sauce Behind Hela Spice

The next time you walk down a grocery aisle, pause for a moment. Pick up a sauce, a seasoning blend, a ready‑to‑cook meal. Chances are, something inside that package began its life far from a big‑city food lab and was instead produced inside the Hela Spice facility tucked in north Durham.

“If you walk around a grocery store and look at any of the branded products, more than likely we’ve had a hand in the great majority of them,” says Eric Nummelin, Director of Sales, Marketing and Research and Development at Hela Spice Canada Inc. 

From its home base in Uxbridge, Ontario, Hela Spice operates at the intersection of creativity, science and speed. Nummelin describes Hela Spice as a creative R&D and production center, but spend any time inside the facility and it quickly becomes clear that no two days, and no two products, are ever the same.

A Place Built for Growth

Hela Spice’s journey to north Durham began in Scarborough. The company outgrew its original facility in the early 1990s, and when the time came to expand, geography and lifestyle mattered. Their president lived in Durham Region and the search soon shifted closer to home.

What they found in Uxbridge was a large, food-rated, cost-competitive warehouse which initially, was too big for their needs, but perfectly sized for what they wanted to become. Over the years Hela Spice built a substantial R&D centre on site that attracted talent from across Canada and drew customers to the facility to develop new products with the R&D team directly.

As Nummelin, who grew up in Oshawa, puts it, Uxbridge itself has grown right alongside the company. “It’s changed so much over the years,” he says with a laugh. “It even has rush hour now.”

Where Every Day Starts from Scratch

Ask Nummelin what a typical day looks like, and he doesn’t hesitate: there isn’t one.

A sales request arrives, the R&D manager assigns the task, and the team gets to work. The team develops new products all day, every day, often not knowing in the morning what they’ll be creating by the afternoon.

“Every day the R&D team has to develop new products from scratch,” Nummelin explains. “They don’t know what they’re going to be developing from day-to-day, so I call it ‘forced artistry’. It’s not something they want to make, it’s something they’re told to make – and they have to create it from nothing.”

That intensity is exactly why customers come to Uxbridge. Hela Spice can prototype recipes and finished products quickly so customers can taste and approve concepts in a single visit; something that might take weeks in their own production facilities.

More than Spices

Despite the name, Hela Spice is far more than a seasonings company. Each month, the team develops 120 to 150 new product ideas. Only a small percentage, typically three to four percent, make it all the way to market. But those successes span an impressive range of categories

From meat and dairy to snacks, bakery, and dry ingredients the Uxbridge facility can produce finished products, as well as spices, flavours, starches, and cure units. The team also works across specialized requirements, including organic and natural products, kosher and halal certifications, and steam‑sterilized ingredients.

To make that possible, operations are highly technical. Distinct R&D and production teams work in parallel, with a constant focus on new technology and efficiency. People are often surprised not just at how hands-on the work is, but by how many everyday grocery products quietly trace their origins back to this north Durham facility.

People, Place and Possibility

Hela Spice has roughly 65 to 75 employees during most of the year, peaking at over 80 in the summer when BBQ season drives demand. The production team supports over 250 customers across Canada and some in the US. During high‑volume periods, the facility runs evening shifts to keep up with demand.

Attracting skilled R&D talent has been one of the company’s success stories with many employees relocating to the area, drawn by Uxbridge’s quality lifestyle.

Nummelin points out that north Durham is not “traffic bound”, and trucks and staff can move around easily, a real advantage for a growing manufacturer. 

He also credits local government and regional partners for their responsive and helpful support over the years, particularly when a tornado passed through the area in 2022. Looking ahead, he sees opportunities to strengthen ties with Ontario Tech University and Durham College to build a hiring pipeline for local manufacturers.

Scaling Without Losing Speed

Growth at Hela Spice has been steady. In the last five years, they have added around 15,000 sq. ft. of space, opened a second R&D lab, added shipping doors, and even built a second driveway to accommodate the rising truck volume.

The company has expanded into Quebec with plans to grow into Western Canada, and eventually the U.S. market.

When it comes to hiring, Nummelin offers a simple piece of advice: don’t overthink it. “Give us a call,” he says, “people are sometimes afraid to just pick up the phone or send an e-mail. A lot of times companies have opportunities or needs that are halfway formed, and if the right person is available, they will create the opportunity.”

A Different Kind of Special Ingredient

“We’ve been successful in attracting talent,” Nummelin says. “We have one of the best R&D teams in Canada, and maybe even in North America.”

From rapid development to technical depth, and small‑town roots to national reach, Hela Spice embodies a quieter kind of success story.

One that proves the next big career move may not require a city address, it may just start with a taste of innovation.