The Centre de recherche agroalimentaire de Mirabel could receive more than $210,000
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The Canadian government is providing financial support to help develop alternative food sources.
Yesterday, Mélanie Joly, minister of Canadian heritage, announced the Centre de recherche agroalimentaire de Mirabel (CRAM) in Mirabel, Que. will receive up to $210,970 to help scientists enhance several variables the edible insect industry. Those items include production conditions, processing methods and automated production.
She made the announcement on behalf of federal ag minister Lawrence MacAulay.
“This funding will help contribute to the growing body of knowledge on insect rearing and production for food and feed and will help position Canada as a leader in this fast-growing sector,” she said in a statement yesterday.
The funding could be used to allow growers to produce high-quality insects at a competitive cost and expand into new markets, including pharmaceuticals and soil fertilizer.
Producers in the insect sector are happy to see governments lend their support to the industry.
“There are governments all over the world that are investing heavily into this space,” Jarrod Goldin, co-founder of Entomo Farms, told Farms.com today. Earlier this year, the company entered an agreement with Loblaws to have its cricket powder on store shelves.
The feds’ confidence in the insect industry may spark other investments in the sector, Goldin said.
“It would be great to see even more support behind” insect farming, he said. “With the right kind of investments, we can present evidence about how the industry works and opportunities it provides.”
CRAM representatives also look forward to expanding the insect industry.
"The production of insects for human and animal consumption is a developing sector in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada,” Caroline Provost, executive director of CRAM, said in a statement yesterday. “This industry has immense potential, given the markets that are emerging and the low environmental impact of insect production.”
Cricket farm/Entomo Farms photo