New partnership to advance fermentation processing in Western Canada

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Protein Industries Canada (PIC) has announced a new project to strengthen the use and understanding of fermentation processing technology in ingredient and food processing.

The Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre (Food Centre), the University of Saskatchewan, the Global Agri-Food Advancement Partnership (GAAP) and Ag-West Bio are creating a new fermentation and training program at the Food Centre. The project will build capacity in Canada’s plant-based ingredient and food ecosystem by adding new technology with a skills development and training program.

The addition of fermentation technology and expertise will allow for new plant-based ingredients and food products to be created and commercialized, supporting the growth of Canada’s value-added food sector, says PIC. The program will support collaborative innovation, expertise and skill development between small- and medium-sized enterprises and the consortium, enabling the commercialization of new technology while attracting and fostering a pipeline of future talent for Canada’s plant-based ingredient and food ecosystem.

Bill Greuel, CEO of PIC says increasing the availability of emerging technologies, while recruiting and training future experts, is key to driving innovation in Canada’s plant-based food and ingredient sector.

“In order to advance our sector and reach $25 billion in sales by 2035, we need to both invest in collaborative R&D projects and build capacity within the ecosystem,” Greuel says. “This project is a great example of how working collaboratively across the ecosystem can support the growth of the sector. Increased access to fermentation processing technology guarantees our innovative companies are creating new products that meet ever-growing consumer demand, while ensuring a strong labour force is in place to support the growing ecosystem.”

A total of $1.3 million will be invested in the project. The project partners together are investing $600,000, with PIC investing the remaining $700,000.

This is PIC’s 27th project announcement, and the fifth under its capacity-building stream.

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