Chair's Message
Looking toward the next five years
This year’s annual report marks the end of a lot of firsts for Protein Industries Canada. As we wrapped up our first round of funding this past fiscal, we also saw the completion of our first round of projects. With this came an opportunity for those outside of the Protein Industries Canada staff and project partners to see the results of our projects—products developed over the last five years have begun to hit store shelves, both across Canada and around the world. Canadians trained in our academic partners’ new post-secondary programs are finding new jobs throughout the sector. And new technologies and services created by our trailblazing entrepreneurs are helping make the sector more sustainable.
The end of our first mandate has been a bittersweet moment, but it also leaves us plenty to look forward to.
The 2023-24 fiscal is the start of a new five-year mandate for Protein Industries Canada, and with it the start of a new five-year strategy. In reflecting on the past five years and planning for the next, we’ve adjusted what we see to be the over-arching outcomes of what we’ve set out to achieve. While they aren’t vastly different from what we’ve shared in the past, they do better encompass what Canada’s plant-based sector has the potential to achieve.
One particularly important area of focus is ingredient processing. The development of an ingredient for a consumer packaged good, has the highest value-add potential for Canada’s protein crops. By focusing our co-investments here, Protein Industries Canada can help ensure our sector is developing the products that will help meet the global demand for protein, while achieving Canada’s economic and sustainability goals. In addition to co-investing in innovation, Protein Industries Canada is also committed to making significant progress on helping the industry gain better access to capital and scale-up facilities. These two elements are foundational pieces to Canadian companies developing commercial plant-based ingredients.
That’s not to say we won’t work to achieve other outcomes, however. Over the next five years, we’ve also set our sights on achieving outcomes in the following areas: economic growth; reducing GHG emissions; scaling Canadian companies; global impact; food security; and economic reconciliation.
It will take strategic co-investments to reach the goals we’ve set in each of these areas. The second round of funding we received from the Government of Canada will become the foundation of our strategic investment portfolio moving forward, helping us maintain our focus on making Canada a leader in the supply of plant-based foods, feed and ingredients. But it will take the whole of the sector to reach our goals.
There’s plenty to be achieved. Innovation doesn’t occur in a vacuum; it requires input and support from many voices and communities, while benefitting significantly more. Our partners’ projects are no exception.
With another five years of funding ahead of us, Protein Industries Canada is looking forward to continuing to work with innovative, trail-blazing companies across the country to build a better Canada—a healthier, more sustainable Canada built on more jobs and a stronger economy.
