Government of Canada invests in small businesses developing solutions to improve food safety

OTTAWA —The Government of Canada is investing in Canadian small businesses to develop tools, products and services that keep Canada’s food, plants and animals safe.

Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, and Marie-Claude Bibeau, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food announced that $500,000 will be given to a Canadian small business, iFood Packaging Systems Corporation (Summerland, British Columbia) through the Innovative Solutions Canada (ISC) program’s phase 2 prototype development challenge.

“To protect the health and safety of Canadians and our environment, pushing the limits on technology and innovation is crucial,” said Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health. “Through the Innovative Solutions Canada program and small businesses like iFood Packaging Systems Corporation, we can support more eco-friendly treatment solutions that will protect our food, plants, and animals. These type of food safety and security initiatives are helping us work together to minimize long-term health risks and keep Canada healthy.”

As methyl bromide- the current phytosanitary treatment method to control plant pests and pathogens- gets phased out due to its ozone depleting properties, this funding will be used to develop a phytosanitary treatment solution that is more eco-friendly.

Through ISC, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency also launched a new challenge related to developing a portable test to detect domoic acid in marine waters. Acute poisoning can be life threatening and cumulative low doses over time can cause cognitive disability or illness. Therefore, the intent of this device will be to inform harvesters of potential domoic acid risk in real-time which will help enhance food safety initiatives and save resources associated with food safety investigations, recall, and costly product destruction activities.