New partnership to advance fermentation processing in Western Canada

Protein Industries Canada announces 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 combining expertise to create 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 marrying the addition of new technology with a skills development and training program.

“Protein Industries Canada continues to create new possibilities for Canadian crops,” said the François-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry. “By bringing together key players, this project will help find new ways to produce premium healthy and sustainable food products and provide good jobs for people across Canada.”

“Today’s announcement will develop and leverage emerging fermentation technology to produce novel plant-based ingredients, food and feed products for Canadians and international markets. Building the fermentation ecosystem starts with attracting and training the right talent for Canada’s small- and medium-sized plant-based food and beverage sector. This project will increase capacity to utilize fermentation technology, commercialize opportunities and create higher paying jobs,” said Marie-Claude Bibeau, minister of agriculture and agri-food.

The addition of fermentation technology and expertise will allow for new plant-based ingredients and food products to be created and commercialized. The expansion of fermentation processing technology is an emerging opportunity for Canada. This method of processing can help the country’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector increase its competitive edge in the global market and attract new talent, as it’s considered more sustainable and offers a higher profit margin than many processing methods previously used by the sector.

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.

A total of $1.3 million will be invested into the project. The project partners are together investing $600,000, with Protein Industries Canada investing the remaining $700,000.