Protein Industries Canada invests in new plant-based products

Protein Industries Canada announces co-investment into a project that will utilize some of Canada’s most widely grown crops in the development of new plant-based foods and ingredients.

Merit Functional Foods, TWC Nutrition, Daiya Foods and Grand River Foods are partnering to utilize Merit Functional Foods’ pea, canola and blended pea-canola protein ingredients in new plant-based products. This could include alternative meat products, alternative dairy products and other beverages, developed by TWC Nutrition, Daiya Foods and Grand River Foods.

“Canada has become a global supplier of ingredients and plant-based foods. This project, led by Merit Foods, will help producers reach new markets while meeting growing consumer demand for alternative protein products. This will help us find high-quality Canadian ingredients and strengthen the Canadian economy,” said François-Philippe Champagne, innovation, science and industry minister.

Protein Industries Canada is providing half of the investment into the project, with Merit Functional Foods, TWC Nutrition, Daiya Foods and Grand River Foods together investing the remaining half for a total project investment of $7.9 million.

The project’s scaling up of Merit Functional Foods’ ingredient development represents a significant step forward not only in Canada’s intellectual property potential, but also the country’s ability to utilize its diverse crop selection in new ways that prioritize consumer health and taste.

“Canada is known for our diverse selection of high quality crops, but we have the potential to be known for what we can do with them,” said Protein industries Canada CEO Bill Greuel. “Merit Functional Foods has proven that our peas and canola make for ideal plant protein ingredients, and now TWC Nutrition, Daiya Foods and Grand River Foods will help show consumers around the world that these ingredients can be the base for healthy, delicious plant-based foods and beverages.”