Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced that Advanced Foods and Materials (AFM) Canada is receiving a $500,000 investment to turn byproducts of flax and hemp into highquality fibre.
AFM will use this $500,000 investment to increase production capabilities of the technology developed by Blue Goose Biorefineries.
The development of this technology will increase the value per acre of hemp and flax crops by finding uses for parts of plants that are currently considered waste. The increased production and availability of high-value cellulose products will create jobs in manufacturing, transportation, and research and development, to the benefit of the agricultural sector and Canada's economy as a whole. The technology also benefits the environment by expanding biorefining capabilities.
"We are pleased to lead the scale-up of this technology and are looking forward to working with Blue Goose, POS Bio-Sciences and the University of Saskatchewan," said Perry Lidster, AFM Canada managing director in a news release.
AFM is a national nonprofit organization in the research, development and commercialization service for innovations in the biomaterials, food, and health sectors.
"This technology will create a new revenue stream for farmers by using what were essentially waste products and getting value for them back at the farm gate," said Ritz in a news release.
The project is funded under the Agricultural Innovation Program - a $50-million initiative announced as part of Canada's Economic Action Plan 2011.
No comments:
Post a Comment