Agriculture Canada Invests in Canola
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Agriculture Canada is investing $6.4 million dollars into Canada’s canola industry to support farmers and keep Canada’s canola industry competitive. The funding will provide support to canola farmers through three of Agriculture Canada’s existing projects: the Bio-Exx project will be developed with funding from the Agri-Opportunities Program, to develop the world’s first extraction facility for canola protein fit for human consumption; Grow Canola 2.015, will be funded under the Agricultural Flexibility Fund, and be used to develop communication and information-sharing media for canola farmers; and the Canola Council of Canada will receive funding from the AgriMarketing Program to help expand into international markets.
The Canola Council of Canada feels these new initiatives will play a critical role in helping Canada reach the canola’s industry’s goal to reach 15 million tonnes of sustained production and demand by 2015.
A quintessentially Canadian product (the name “Canola” comes from “Canadian Oil”), canola is one of Canada’s primary agricultural exports. Demand for this high quality edible oil has grown in recent years in response to concerns about heart health and the high level of saturated fat in the North American diet. Canola oil is low in saturated fat and contains both monounsaturated fat and omega-3 fatty acids (the “healthy” fats). Across Europe and North America, as legislation tightens around the use of trans fat in commercially available foods and in restaurants, trans fat- and cholesterol-free canola oil, fills an increasingly valuable niche.
Furthermore, canola is the preferred feedstock for biodiesel, the fastest-growing alternative fuel source. In March, Agriculture Canada announced a $1 million investment in the Sustainable Cropping System Platforms for Biodiesel Feedstock Quantity and Quality (SBQQ) research network, to carry out a series of experiments conducted across the major soil zones and ecoregions of Western Canada.
Says Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz of the new investment announcement: “”Canadian farmers are leading the world in canola production and the Government of Canada is working with them to tap international markets and get more buyers bidding on their products. The projects we’re announcing today will make Canada’s canola industry more competitive and make sure our farmers can continue to drive our economy.”
