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Commercializing high-protein canola seed and sunflower meal

Technology
Technology Leadership Priority

Genetics

PROJECT TIMELINE
January 2024 to March 2028
PROJECT STATUS
Fund II: In progress
TOTAL INVESTMENT
$31,022,628

Consortia Contribution
$17,647,178

Cluster Contribution
$13,375,450

Partners

Corteva Agriscience

Botaneco

Bunge

Rainfed Foods

Northeast Nutrition Inc.

Goal

To improve the competitiveness and profitability of Canadian canola and sunflower in both domestic and international markets by supporting the commercialization of a high-protein canola meal for use in the aquaculture, feed and food sectors, and improve sunflower protein characteristics for a wide range of plant-based food applications

Project Summary

This project builds off a Protein Industries Canada project led by Corteva, which successfully created the genetic platform for creating, selecting and commercially testing high-protein, reduced-fibre canola germplasm. The second phase of this project will transition into commercialization and market acceptance of high-protein canola meal in feed applications for non-ruminant livestock, including farmed aquaculture fish.

Corteva and Botaneco are the project’s leading collaborators and are working with Bunge and Northeast Nutrition to introduce and test canola meal in end-use feed rations.

Corteva is continuing its focus on delivering high-protein canola seed, which is producing meal characterized by an increase in protein and reduction in fibre, enhancing its usability in animal feed.

Bunge and Corteva are producing high-protein canola meal for feeding studies and consumer sampling, building commercial acceptance and increasing the nutritional value in end-use products.

Using their novel aqueous processing method, Botaneco is scaling up their Alofin™ canola protein concentrate production, while also prototyping Purezome™ sunflower and canola-based oleosomes and sunflower protein isolates for use in plant-based dairy and meat alternatives.

Northeast Nutrition is testing Botaneco’s Alofin™ canola protein in their aquafeed formulations, while Rainfed Foods is incorporating Botaneco’s Purezome™ sunflower oilbodies and protein isolates in their millet-based alternative milk products to enhance nutrition.

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