The last penny minted in Canada since its introduction in 1858 is on its way to the country's currency museum in Ottawa.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty pushed the button just after 11 a.m. local time (noon ET) at the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg.

After about a minute or so, the final coin dropped into a clear container from the side of the bright yellow press.

Flaherty picked up the penny wearing white gloves and held it up for a flurry of flashing cameras and television crews.

"It was very cool," he said when asked how it felt to push the button.

"This is the coin that was not working very well in business," he said after the official ceremony.

Flaherty said the penny has a long history in Canada since it was first domestically produced in 1908 to mark the opening of a British Royal Mint branch in Ottawa.

"At the time and for many generations that followed, the humble one-cent circulation coin was a workhorse of Canadian commerce," he said.

"It was also for many years a positive source of revenue for the mint and the Canadian government when its one-cent face value exceeded the cost of producing and distributing the penny," Flaherty said.

But that changed when the "fine balance" of production costs and value couldn't be maintained, he said.

Over time, inflation eroded the value of the penny, multiplying its manufacturing costs, Flaherty said.

The federal government decided to put an end to the penny in its March budget, calling it "a currency without currency" that cost taxpayers 1.6 cents for each coin minted, or $11 million per year.

Plus, it takes business owners more time to process pennies, taking them away from the task of growing their company and creating jobs, he said.



While the mint has found innovative ways over the years to cut costs and introduce new techniques in currency manufacture, the time had come to end production of an underused coin that's no longer vital to commerce, Flaherty said.

He hopes Canadians will donate their remaining pennies to charitable causes across the country.

Habitat for Humanity has launched a national campaign to support its work building housing for families who need assistance with home ownership.

"I also wish the best for charities across the country launching penny campaigns. I can think of no better tribute for this historic coin and consider it fitting that they could have a lasting impact in the service of causes that Canadians believe in," Flaherty said.

As well, about one million pennies from the mint will be offered to Canadians as collector's pieces to mark the occasion.

The penny has been in use in what is now Canada since 1858 when the decimal system was adopted. The first coins in the Dominion of Canada were issued in 1870.

About 35 billion pennies have been issued since then, more than half of them in the last two decades.

Cash transactions will soon be rounded to the nearest five-cent increment.

If a coffee costs a $1.27, it will be rounded down to $1.25, but if that coffee costs $1.28, it will be bumped up to $1.30.

Transactions involving debit cards, credit cards or cheques will still be calculated to the cent.

Although there's no "end date" for the use of the penny, the government advises anyone wanting to cash them in to roll them up and take them to a bank.

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