Annual Report 2022-2023
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2023–2024 Objectives & Actions

The next five years provides an opportunity for Canada to securely cement our position as the global leader in plant-based food and ingredients. It is critical that we are successful in scaling companies, commercializing our technology and increasing our ingredient processing capacity. By focusing on these outcomes, we will build a sustainable and healthy Canada while also contributing a reliable global food supply chain.

Protein Industries Canada's 2023–2024 objectives & actions are aligned with our vision and five-year strategic plan.

View Protein Industries Canada's Five-Year Strategic Plan.

Protein Industries Canada will contribute to building a better Canada through:

  • Economic growth: we will support the prosperity of every Canadian by creating a reliable, sustainable and long-term industry for Canada’s economy that will be worth $25 billion by 2035 and will employ upwards of 17,000 Canadians from coast-to-coast;
  • Reduce GHG emissions: we will support innovation to decrease GHG reductions related to agriculture and food processing;
  • Scaling Canadian companies: we will support Canadian companies to grow and be successful, achieving $25 billion in annual revenue from Canadian innovation and intellectual property (IP);
  • Global impact: we will anchor Canada as a global force in the plant-based revolution—increasing recognition, investment, sales and leadership;
  • Food security: we will contribute to domestic and international food security by building out an integrated and resilient value chain that allows Canada to make our own ingredients and food and export high-value, nutritious products to countries around the world; and
  • Economic reconciliation: we will support the prosperity of Indigenous peoples through meaningful partnerships and mutually beneficial opportunities that lead to shared prosperity.

To reach these outcomes, Protein Industries Canada will:

  • Re-balance the distribution of investment to focus on the priority of ingredient processing, the largest value creation opportunity for Canada;
  • Earmark investment specific to GHG reduction, while also incorporating specific evaluation criteria and tracking progress towards the net-zero target;
  • Support the investment of $800 million into Canadian businesses;
  • Ensure a path to commercialization through comprehensive business and risk assessments;
  • Lead regulatory modernization through our Regulatory Centre, focusing on regulations associated with labeling, mandatory fortification and novel food approval;
  • Increase investment and focus on total-seed utilization—specifically on innovation related to bio-industrial products that have the potential to reduce single-use plastics and petroleum-based products;
  • Diversify our investment portfolio to include the next generation of food products including whole muscle cuts, dairy and egg alternatives, and bakery items;
  • Further leverage Fund I investments by stacking IP to accelerate innovation and create new IP assets;
  • Build relationships with key international markets to further increase Canada’s global presence and to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) and new customers for Canadian products;
  • Continue focusing on re-skilling and introducing youth, Indigenous peoples and new Canadians to the opportunities provided by the agriculture and food-processing sector; and
  • Utilize artificial intelligence to help accelerate innovation, support process improvement and to better understand consumer demands, specifically around Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors and nutrition of plant-based food and ingredients.
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Member Prosperity

Our members are profitable and are contributing to Canada’s economy.

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members commercialize profitable products and services and scale their businesses.

ACTIONS:

  • Review the Fund I IP portfolio and identify stacking, cross-licensing and commercialization opportunities
  • Identify synergies and facilitate partnerships to bring other investment into Protein Industries Canada funded projects
  • Establish a project portfolio that aligns with our strategic plan and target category spends
  • Strive to be best in class for project development, assessment, management, reporting and communication to help ensure commercial success
  • Deliver the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (PCAIS) / AI Commercialization program

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada technology projects create meaningful partnerships for members.

ACTIONS:

  • Increase the minimum level of collaboration from two to three industry stakeholders on projects funded by Protein Industries Canada
  • Strengthen the value-chain approach from genetics through to ingredients and products in collaborative innovation
  • Ensure that viable project concepts that are not supported by Protein Industries Canada are channelled to alternative funding sources

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members have sufficient opportunities to create new collaborations.

ACTIONS:

  • Hold a series of member events, workshops and webinars
  • Increase engagement and usage of the Protein Industries Canada member portal and IP Hub
  • Revise membership structure to be more inclusive and reflect the diversity of stakeholders within the ecosystem
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Ecosystem Evolution

Canada is the preferred place to do business.

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members have the information they need to make informed business decisions and to contribute to the growth of the ecosystem.

ACTIONS:

  • Measure the progress and identify the next set of priorities on The Road to $25 Billion (Roadmap)
  • Review the outcomes of Fund I projects (i.e. asset maps, reports, strategies, market research) and identify opportunities to leverage, share and expand on their findings
  • Broaden and expand Protein Industries Canada’s 2020 Ernst & Young report to better reflect the diversity of the sector
  • Deeply understand Canada’s competitive landscape and leverage this information to create awareness amongst decision-makers, development agencies and others to increase Canada’s competitiveness

OBJECTIVE

Canada’s regulatory and policy system is responsive and supports innovation and commercialization in the plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector.

ACTIONS:

  • Implement the five-year Regulatory Centre strategic plan
  • Engage with technology projects participants to pro-actively address regulatory hurdles

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members have access to the capital they need to scale their businesses.

ACTIONS:

  • Provide knowledge of the sector to the capital community
  • Continue to work with the capital community on investment solutions for ingredient manufacturers
  • Create meaningful connections between members and the capital community

OBJECTIVE

A labour force and talent pool strong enough to support the growth of Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector.

ACTIONS:

  • Collaborate to implement the National Workforce Strategic Plan for the plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector
  • Work to develop technical expertise, PhD and post-doctoral fellowship exchanges with select universities and research institutions

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members have access to research, innovation and scale up infrastructure.

ACTIONS:

  • Support companies in navigating domestic and international research and scale-up infrastructure
  • Collaborate with private sector companies, equipment manufacturers and all levels of government to evaluate and build the business case for a Canadian-based ingredient innovation, scale-up and co-manufacturing facility

OBJECTIVE

Strengthen the value proposition of Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector.

ACTIONS:

  • Refine and measure the sustainability of Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector
  • Collaborate with other Global Innovation Clusters and industry to develop a large multidisciplinary project to develop an effective Measurement, Verification and Reporting (MVR) system for environment sustainability for Canadian grown and processed food and ingredients
  • Explore, define and leverage additional attributes of Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector to expand its value proposition to industry, government, and consumers; such as its contribution to the health and well-being of Canadians

OBJECTIVE

Under-represented groups benefit from the economic growth of the sector.

ACTIONS:

  • Ensure all Protein Industries Canada funded projects contribute to Economic Reconciliation
  • Build on the most successful talents and skills projects from Fund I (Palette Skills and the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT) micro credential program) to ensure more training for under-represented groups

OBJECTIVE

AI platform technology providers view Canada’s agrifood sector as an opportunity.

ACTIONS:

  • Communicate the potential of Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector as a growth opportunity for AI-technology companies
  • Create meaningful connections between AI providers and Protein Industries Canada members
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Global Leadership

Canada is a partner of choice to secure the global food supply chain.

OBJECTIVE

Canada’s value proposition for plant-based food, feed and ingredients is understood in key markets.

ACTIONS:

  • Implement a more strategic and deliberate approach to international events and conferences that align with Protein Industries Canada’s International Engagement Strategy
  • Plan for and execute on the Plant Forward 2024
  • Support incoming trade and innovation missions

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada members experience meaningful collaboration with international partners.

ACTIONS:

  • Explore and facilitate a collaborative research and development call with Innovate UK and Wageningen University and Research (Netherlands)
  • Support members in international research and development collaborations

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada is viewed as a strong contributor to national and international initiatives.

ACTIONS:

  • Participate in national initiatives such as the implementation of The Next Green Revolution and the Advisory Committee of the U of Guelph’s Feeding the Future with Canadian Technology
  • Actively participate as a member of the Canadian delegation for COP28
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Organizational Relevance

We are a mainstay of Canada’s innovation landscape.

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada is a going concern beyond March 31, 2028.

KEY ACTIONS:

  • Identify additional sources of long-term funding for Protein Industries Canada supported investments
  • Evaluate additional sources of revenue to support operations
  • Ensure excellence in program delivery to create opportunities for additional programming
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One Team

We have a shared vision and passion to strengthen Canada and create benefit for every Canadian.

OBJECTIVE

A Board of Directors that establishes the strategic direction and assists in execution.

ACTIONS:

  • Ensure the board has the tools and information needed to provide strategic direction
  • Support the board to be champions for the organization

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada programs and services are delivered in an efficient and effective manner.

ACTIONS:

  • Implement best practices, lessons learned and new technologies to improve efficiency and member experience
  • Ensure a secure IT environment that will respect the integrity and confidentiality of information

OBJECTIVE

Protein Industries Canada is a values-based, diverse and inclusive organization where differences are acknowledged and celebrated.

ACTIONS:

  • Allocate two per cent of base salaries to professional development activities
  • Improve formal communication within the organization
  • Approach our work with a cross-functional, one-team approach
  • Be intentional in fostering an inclusive workplace environment
  • Ensure job postings are more accessible to potential Indigenous candidates