b'processing plants much more quickly and easily there than here.PPAAs goal is to make plant protein a key economic driver That said, consumers care about where and how their food isof Albertas economy. To get there, PPAA is striving toward produced, which means China isnt at such an advantage.supporting the development of high-functioning value chains, I dont see China being a long-term solution, says Ammeter.state-of-the-art infrastructure and commercialized, market-A lot of companies are demanding good air, good water, gooddriven products. It sees itself fulfilling four key roles: leading HACCP [food safety hazard avoidance protocol]. We at timesand supporting strategic alliances, encouraging collaborative question whether food processors are willing to pay enough forrelationships, cheerleading new ideas, and building awareness. it yet, but customers definitely want it. Whereas a lot of us willWe spend a lot of our time with people who are just starting put up with clothing, tools, kids toys manufactured who knowsto change their mindset, showing them how important it is to where, food is different. make a shift, says Ammeter. And, we are also already working Dan Dibbelt, executive director of the Peace Regionalwith some incredible entrepreneurs who are already in Alberta, Economic Development Alliance, agrees.connecting them to whomever they need for support, whether The world is changing. People want local, they want to knowthats venture capitalists or angel investors or distributors, who grew it, they want to know what area of the world itset cetera. We see our role as being connectors, introducers, from, says Dibbelt. I used to love canned mushrooms, but willnetworkers to help in any way with the existing industry and never buy those again. I dont know whats in the water [fromalso to motivate those who are thinking of investing.mushrooms processed in China]. People are looking more andOne of PPAAs major mandates is to lobby various levels more at that. They want to know their food is clean, that itsof government to improve the competitive environment for processed properly. plant protein processing in Alberta. Certain regions, especially He also believes consumers are moving toward flexitariansome eastern U.S. states, are several steps ahead of Canada in diets: additional good news for plant protein processing.providing incentives that draw new processing investment. Quite honestly, I love meat. My dad was a butcher andCanada is getting the picture that we have to bend over sausage maker. Im never giving up meat. But, would I eatbackwards to attract companies because it benefits all a veggie burger100 per cent. Its about variety. I dontCanadians, says Ammeter. Im not talking about wining and know it will ever be that we get rid of meat, but I do believedining and crazy things: Im talking maybe giving them a tax diversification is here to stay. Even here in northern Alberta,break for a couple of years, maybe making sure theres no red where we put gravy in our baby bottles, people are curious, andtape. Its a mindset: we need to have government and industry theyre excited about plant proteins. working in tandem to figure out what we can do to have [companies] relocate here. Already, Canada has drawn some big time investment. Among the more exciting builds, is the new Roquette plant slated to open in Portage la Prairie, Man., in the spring of 2020. With an annual processing capacity of 125,000 tonnes of yellow peas per year, the company describes the plant as the largest pea processing plant in the world. However, peas are certainly not the only plant protein with potential.Hemp seed protein has really taken off. There are so many products right now using hemp seed for everything from hand lotion to hemp milk, says Ammeter. There are a lot of opportunities for oats right now and, again, were growing the bulk of them. Canolathere is a lot of opportunity there to extract the protein left in the meal after the oil has been crushed out. Flax, triticale, barley, rye: the world is demanding more protein and, here we are, we have it.Possibly the very biggest challenge to bringing in significant new investment is industry mindset: the move from growing raw product to growing and then carrying that product right through processing requires a major paradigm shift. The change isnt impossible: in fact, Canada has Spring 2020 19'