Merit Functional Foods has broken ground on its 88,000 square foot pea and canola protein extraction facility in the Northwest area of Winnipeg. When operational later in 2020, the extraction facility operated is expected to initially process approximately 20,000 tonnes of pea and canola annually.

Merit Functional Foods has broken ground on its 88,000 square foot pea and canola protein extraction facility in the Northwest area of Winnipeg. When operational later in 2020, the extraction facility operated is expected to initially process approximately 20,000 tonnes of pea and canola annually.

Construction begins on protein production plant in Winnipeg

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Merit Functional Foods has started construction of its $80 million 88,000 square foot canola and pea protein production facility near the airport in Winnipeg.

Burcon NutraScience Corporation, a Canadian company and global technology leader in the development of plant-based proteins, is a partner in the project. Burcon has been working for years on canola protein isolates, and the Merit Foods facility will produce its branded proteins Supertein, containing the amino acid napin, and Puratein, containing the amino acid cruciferin. It will also produce Burcon’s branded pea protein isolates

The ‘flex production plant’ is planned to start on peas, processing approximately 20,000 tonnes of yellow field peas per year beginning fourth quarter 2020.

Tara Kozlowich, vice president of marketing for Merit, says the facility will have the ability to “flex” between multiple plant proteins. “There is currently a significant demand for pea protein. Canola, we believe could very well be the next big thing.”

Johann Tergesen, Burcon’s president and chief executive officer, explains the benefits of having their own production facility: “Having the capacity to produce both our unique pea proteins, as well as our canola proteins, in our own production facility is a key pillar of our differentiation strategy. We look forward to offering our pea and canola protein products to customers and consumers in Canada, North America and worldwide.”

To describe the size of the global market for plant protein isolates, Kozlowich cites a couple of studies on the outlook for plant-based protein and meat alternatives.

She says the investment firm UBS projects sales of plant-based protein and meat alternatives to increase from $4.6 billion in 2018 to $85 billion in 2030. “The Swiss company said its 2030 estimate could be a conservative if innovation and consumer awareness drive more consumption,” she says.

Her second projection is from Markets and Markets, a marketing research company: “The plant-based protein market is estimated to account for a value of US$18.5 billion in 2019 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.0 per cent from 2019, to reach a value of US$40.6 billion by 2025.”

The Markets and Markets projection added that plant-based proteins are used in beverages, dairy alternatives, meat alternatives, protein bars, nutrition supplements, processed meat, poultry and seafood, bakery, food, and sports nutrition products “to enhance their nutritional and functional properties, such as texturing, emulsifying, solubility, stabilizing and binding.”

Kozlowich says Merit will work both directly with farmers and with grain
companies to acquire peas and canola for processing.