Manitoba plant-based protein research grows with funding boost
Almost $10M in funding from Protein Industries Canada to be matched by industry partners
A new collaboration with close to $10 million of funding from the federally funded Protein Industries Canada (PIC) supercluster will further bolster the growing plant-based protein industry in Manitoba.
Saskatchewan-based PIC will provide $9.6 million in funding which will be matched by industry, including Roquette and Prairie Fava to study various elements of plant-based protein extraction.
The French company, Roquette, is in the final stages of construction of a $400-million pea protein plant in Portage la Prairie. Prairie Fava, a much smaller family-owned operation in Glenboro, Man. is one of the few fava bean processing operations in the country.
Among other things, the funding will go towards gaining a better understanding of doing plant-based protein extraction in cold weather and investigating the effectiveness of pea-fava protein blends.
The multi-year project will involve new research into breeding, agronomics, finished product testing and human clinical trials. It is expected that the project consortium will include at least 11 Canadian academic and research institutions and two additional smaller companies.
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