$40 million to be invested in the first round of eligible projects

REGINA, April 18, 2019 /CNW/ - Protein Industries Canada has announced its first call for proposals, allocating $40 million for co-investment into projects that will position Canada as the centre of high-quality plant-based protein products and co-products. Projects will be accepted in all four priority areas: Create, Grow, Make and Sell.  The investment made by Protein Industries Canada will match up to 50 per cent of industry investments on all eligible expenses for successful projects. 

"This is an exciting day for Protein Industries Canada," CEO Bill Greuel said. "We are eager to collaborate with businesses, big and small, to co-invest in projects that have the potential to transform the agriculture and food processing industries in Canada. We already grow the crops, but we need to add more value to our primary production here at home. This is our opportunity to leverage our strengths from across the value-chain to produce new ingredients and products."

The deadline to submit an Expression of Interest for the first round of investment is midnight June 28, 2019. A second call for proposals will open September 1.

As part of the initial call for proposals, Protein Industries Canada also released its five-year Supercluster strategy, launched its membership drive and announced a series of events across the Prairies designed to bring companies together to learn about Protein Industries Canada and to begin discussing and collaborating on potential projects. 

"We know that the opportunity for plant protein is massive, and we know that Canada is one of the only jurisdictions in the world that can meet the growing demand for plant protein-based food and livestock feed. To capture this opportunity, we must work collaboratively to share risk, leverage our strengths and accelerate innovation. The Supercluster initiative is more than just investing money – it is about doing business differently –to overcome barriers and explore new opportunities," Greuel said.

To submit a project for co-investment, consortium applicants must be a member of PIC and the project must be aligned with the objectives of the program. Information on membership, the project application process and a listing of upcoming events can be found online at www.proteinindustriescanada.ca.

Protein Industries Canada (PIC), one of Canada's five Superclusters, was created to position Canada as a leading global source of sustainable, high-quality plant protein and plant-based co-products. PIC will invest $153 million, made available by the Government of Canada's Innovation Superclusters Initiative, across the value chain over the next four years.

SOURCE Protein Industries Canada

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