In Canada, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced an investment of over C$1.8 million under the AgriAssurance Program to assist Bioindustrial Innovation Canada to further develop quality standards to accelerate growth of the bioeconomy in the agriculture sector.
The bioeconomy, which is part of the green economy, is based on the production and sale of products other than foodstuffs made from agricultural, aquatic and forestry resources, or even municipal waste. This can include crops grown as alternatives to petroleum-based products, such as corn for ethanol, or using waste like stems and leaves to produce bioproducts such as packaging.
With the Government of Canada’s investment, Bioindustrial Innovation Canada will work with Biomass Quality Network Canada to develop research-based standards for measuring and assessing the quality of bioproducts made from agricultural sources. This will help producers better understand the quality standards needed to market raw materials to processors, and in turn, equip processors with more information and educational tools to assure their customers that bioproducts can replace traditional materials in terms of quality and performance.
