thumb|right|Pulp and Paper Mill owned by JDI in [[Saint John, New Brunswick.]]

J.D. Irving, Limited (JDI) is a privately owned conglomerate company headquartered in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. It is a part of the Irving Group of Companies and consists of various subsidiaries, including Irving Tissue, Irving Equipment, Kent Building Supplies, New Brunswick Railway, New Brunswick Southern Railway, Eastern Maine Railway, Maine Northern Railway, Acadia Broadcasting, Irving Shipbuilding, and Cavendish Farms, among others. JDI operates across a range of industries, including forestry, forestry products, agriculture, food processing, transportation, and shipbuilding. Together with Irving Oil and Ocean Capital Investments, JDI constitutes the core of the Irving Group of Companies, which consolidates the business interests of the Irving family.

History

J.D. Irving, Limited traces its origins to a sawmill operated in Bouctouche, New Brunswick, by its namesake, James Dergavel Irving. The report further noted that "the Irvings' corporate interests form an industrial-media complex that dominates the province" to a degree "unique in developed countries." During Senate hearings, journalists and academics cited a lack of critical reporting on the Irving family's businesses in Irving-owned newspapers.

Censorship concerns

JDI has repeatedly criticized CBC News and its New Brunswick provincial affairs reporter, Jacques Poitras. In 2014, Poitras published Irving vs. Irving: Canada's Feuding Billionaires and the Stories They Won't Tell, which Bruce Livesey of Canada's National Observer described as detailing "the recent history of the Irvings' media holdings, as well as the deteriorating relationship among the Irving brothers and cousins as they squabble over the empire's wealth and future direction." Two days later, JDI spokesperson Mary Keith released a "sharply worded" statement condemning the report as a "sensational story" that presented "an unsubstantiated conspiracy theory as fact," and falsely implied Irving's involvement in a conspiracy against Cleary. Irving demanded CBC "immediately remove the story from their website, publish a full retraction, and apologize for their appalling behaviour." Poitras responded on Twitter: "We stand by our story."

In 2016 and 2017, JDI filed two complaints with the CBC ombudsman seeking to bar Poitras from reporting on the Irving family; both were dismissed. CBC Ombudsman Esther Enkin stated that restricting Poitras "would amount to a form of censorship." Located on Water Street with a single slipway along Georgetown Harbour, it is the province's sole active shipyard.

Founded as Bathurst Marine in Bathurst, New Brunswick, in 1961, the yard relocated to Georgetown in 1965. It operated under various names before adopting its current designation in the 1990s.

Notable vessels constructed at East Isle include:

  • Fireboat tug Atlantic Spruce (1995)
  • Tugboat Atlantic Oak (2004)
  • Royal Canadian Navy Glen-class tugs:
  • CFAV Glenevis (YTB 642) (1976)
  • CFAV Glenbrook (YTB 643) (1976)
  • CFAV Glenside (YTB 644) (1977)

Former subsidiaries

The following were formerly part of J.D. Irving, Limited:

  • Brunswick News, which published:
  • Telegraph-Journal (Saint John, New Brunswick)
  • Times & Transcript (Moncton, New Brunswick)
  • The Daily Gleaner (Fredericton, New Brunswick)
  • The Bugle-Observer (Woodstock, New Brunswick)
  • Acadian Lines Ltd. (intercity bus service)
  • Pictou Shipyard (Pictou, Nova Scotia)

Citations

References

  • Official website
  • J.D. Irving, Equipment Division