Protein Industries Canada opens call for technology leadership projects

Protein Industries Canada will accept new EOIs for their Technology Leadership Program on May 8, 2023. This is the second call for projects under the new tranche of $150 million funding provided through the Global Innovation Cluster program.

“We received an overwhelming response from our first call for projects,” CEO of Protein Industries Canada Bill Greuel said. “With 36 EOIs, it is evident that the sector is positive about the long-term growth opportunities for plant-based food, feed and ingredients, and that the cluster model has been embraced by the industry.”

EOIs under the second round may be submitted until June 26; however, consortiums are encouraged to submit their EOIs as soon as they are ready. EOIs will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, allowing successful submissions to move to the next step in the process in a timely manner.

As in the first round, projects must align with at least one area of focus:

• Genetics: Germplasm development with an aim to improve processing efficiency, quality, sensory characteristics and the development of novel ingredients.
• Crops: Technologies to measure and improve on-farm sustainability and information flow along the value chain.
• Ingredients: The development, scaling and optimization of plant-based ingredients.
• Products: The conversion of Canadian-made ingredients and co-products into consumption-ready goods.

EOIs will be accepted from consortiums of at least three partners, one of which must be an SME. Projects must include the use of a high-protein dryland crop such as lentils, peas, chickpeas, canola, fava, oat, flax, lupin or soy. Approved projects may receive up to 45 per cent reimbursement of eligible costs. Interested consortiums are asked to visit https://www.proteinindustriescanada.ca/technology and fill out the form at the bottom of the page. A member from Protein Industries Canada’s Project team will reach out to schedule a preliminary meeting. This first meeting must be held prior to an EOI being submitted.

“We know that transformational projects with the potential to drive exponential growth for Canada take time,” Greuel said. “That’s why we were eager to launch a second call for EOIs and support consortiums in starting their work on their new projects. We saw so much interest in our first Fund that we are very excited about the potential for the next round of projects and the impacts they will have on the global plant-based ecosystem.”

Protein Industries Canada was renewed with $150 million from the federal government under the Global Innovation Cluster program in February 2023. This positions Protein Industries Canada to further build off the success of their first mandate, in which 55 projects were co-invested in with a total portfolio of nearly half a billion dollars. In addition to Fund II Technology Leadership Projects, Protein Industries Canada is also currently accepting EOIs under the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy.

Miranda Burski
Protein Industries Canada
Regina, Sask.
306-581-1340
miranda@proteinsupercluster.ca