Phyto Organix Foods Inc. is planning to purchase 15 acres of land in Strathmore, Alta. in order to build a $225 million pea processing facility, a May 24 news release said. The plant will be operational by 2024 and will use proprietary wet fractionation technology to process 40,000 metric tonnes of yellow peas annually into soluble and insoluble protein isolates, processed fibre and starch, and high-quality dietary pea hull fibre.
“Plant-based protein is an emerging sub-sector with significant potential for growth and diversification of the agri-processing industry in Alberta. With demand for high-quality plant-based products increasing dramatically in recent years, Alberta’s government is pleased to support companies like Phyto Organix,” Nate Horner, Alberta minister of agriculture, forestry and rural economic development, said in the release.
The plant will employ 80 people once it is operational. Phyto Organix received $1 million over two years, cost-shared by the federal and provincial governments through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, to support engineering costs and the purchase of equipment, the release said.
Phyto Organix’s 100,000 square foot facility will be the first net zero plant protein processing facility in North America. The release noted that by building the plant in the yellow pea heartland of Alberta, with annual crop production of over five times the facility’s processing capacity grown within 75 kilometres of the facility, it will minimize emissions from transporting peas supplied by local farmers.
Phyto Organix’s plant proteins and co-products will be marketed under the brand Phyto Optimate.
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