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Bioproducts cluster receives up to $11.2 M

April 29, 2019  By Agriculture and Agri-food Canada (edited)


Image from: AAFC

A federal investment of up to $11.2 million has been announced to the Bioproducts Cluster under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership.

Led by Bioindustrial Innovation Canada, the investment will include an additional $10.9 million in contributions from industry, for a total investment of $22.1 million.

The cluster will support cutting-edge research to develop new applications for farm crops and residues; from energy, to chemicals, to industrial products. One of the projects that will be supported includes an investment of up to $2 million to Ecosynthetix, a renewable chemicals company specializing in bio-based materials, to develop new green resins for adhesive binders in wood products. This could potentially benefit the environment by providing the construction industry with a greener building product.

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The goal is to provide alternatives to non-renewable based materials that will help meet Canada’s commitment to reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and shift towards a renewable-based economy.

“The outcomes of the Bioproducts Cluster will lead to development and further commercialization of technologies focusing on biochemicals, biomaterials, biofuels and energy from the agriculture sector, as well as novel agricultural practices to assist in providing sustainable biomass feedstocks and co-products to these applications. These technologies provide added and alternative value opportunities to the sector to complement existing value chains,” says A.J. (Sandy) Marshall, executive director, of Bioindustrial Innovation Canada, a not-for-profit business accelerator based in Sarnia, Ont.

Bioproducts are renewable products other than food and feed that are derived from agricultural, aquatic or forestry resources, or municipal wastes. They include: biochemicals, biofuels, bioenergy and biomaterials.

The Canadian Agricultural Partnership is a five-year, $3 billion investment by federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen the agriculture and agri-food sector. The Partnership includes programs and activities to enhance the competitiveness of the sector through research, science and innovation.


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