Celebrating 45 Years. 1976-2021

Emterra's 45th Anniversary

February 23, 2021

 Emterra group is celebrating 45 years. 1976-2021. Thinking innovatively. Transforming waste into resources.

The year 2021 holds a wonderful milestone. Emterra Group is proud to celebrate its 45th anniversary.

Emterra has spent 45 years making the communities we service a little (lime) greener. Emterra started in 1976 with one woman, a truck, and a dream. Today, in 2021, Emterra is a trailblazer and an icon in the Canadian and Michigan recycling industries. While a lot has changed over the years, what hasn’t changed is that Emterra still holds that same entrepreneurial spirit. As we look to the future, each of Emterra’s company values will continue to drive the collective organization forward to live its vision and mission; to be a leader in creating and delivering products and services that enable people and businesses to become stewards of the environment and the future.

It all started with an idea. In the mid-1970s, a young immigrant woman whose second language was English was walking through her Winnipeg neighbourhood and noticed discarded paper and cardboard piles in back alleys. She recognized an opportunity in front of her. That woman was CEO of Emterra Group, Emmie Leung. When most people saw garbage, she saw valuable resources that should be recycled.

“I am filled with gratitude as we celebrate this significant milestone, and I would like to thank my business partners and employees for making this milestone possible. My commitment to protect our environmental resources started 45 years ago. Alone, my work would be one drop, but we have made an ocean of difference together. Thank you for joining me and seeing the Emterra vision and mission as ours. I hope that over the next 45 years, we continue to inspire and lead in our industry.” says Emmie Leung, CEO of Emterra Group. 

For four and a half decades, Emterra has been focused on transforming waste into resources. These years have not come without their challenges. Looking to the future, the entire Emterra team will continue to lead the transition to a circular economy with an entrepreneurial spirit and by thinking innovatively.

Here’s to the next 45 years of transforming waste into resources™!  

Emterra then and now. 1976. One woman, one truck, one tonne. 2021. 1,100 people, 600+ trucks, 500,000 tonnes processed/marketed