Canadian Bio-Products
Innovations providing solutions to 21st century challenges
There is growing global awareness and concern about the adverse environmental impacts of traditional industrial development. Canada’s bio-products sector makes investing virtuous by doing the right thing for the environment. Cutting-edge Canadian firms are converting energy crops and other agricultural residues into bio-fibres, bio-fuels and bio-industrial oils – environmentally beneficial alternatives to conventional products that are as healthy for the pocket book as they are for the planet. Canada’s value-added doesn’t end there. Canadian advances in the biological sciences, informatics and process engineering are also using renewable resources such as crops and livestock to create nutritious foods, nutraceuticals and other health-helpful innovations. Add to these advantages Canada’s $2.2 B investment to develop bio fuels, 20-year patent protection, exceptional R&D tax advantages, large pool of post-graduate and post-doctoral researchers, and it is obvious why going green in Canada is good for the bottom line.
Look what Canada has to offer
- Federal mandate to produce 5% biofuel and gasoline by 2010 and 2% biofuel and diesel and heating oil by 2012
- Producers of ethanol eligible for incentives of up to 10 cents per litre of production and up to 20 cents for biodiesel producers
- 19 world class research centres conduct agriculture- and agri-food research
- 2nd largest country in the world, with massive agricultural land providing feed crops
- Highly-educated population – #1globally for percentage with post-secondary education
- Rich research tax advantages – worth up to 65% of companies’ total R&D investment
- A progressive regulatory regime and robust patent and trademark protection
A snapshot of the bio-products sector
- 239 firms employing 3,900 people
- $1.7 billion in revenues
- $828 million in exports
- $90 million invested in R&D
- 80% of firms are small and seeking investors
- Active in biofuels, chemicals, plastics and composites, fibreboard, biocontrol agents (pesticides, fungicides, herbicides) and biocatalysts
Sector strengths
Biofuels – With its large reserves of agricultural and forestry resources and significant quantities of waste organic materials, Canada has more biomass resource per capita than any other nation. Taking advantage of this vast resource and benefiting from a strong knowledge base, the Canadian bioenergy industry is developing leading edge biofuel densification and conversion systems (in liquid form such as ethanol or renewable diesel fuels, gaseous such as biogas or syngas or solid such as pellets or char). Developments in next generation technologies are expected to position Canada as a responsible and innovative global leader in both the sustainable development of biofuels as well as transition the nation towards a bioeconomy. Innovative Canadian technologies are being advanced in the fields of combustion, pyrolysis, gasification, anaerobic digestion, landfill biogas utilization, fermentation and catalytic hydrotreating of biomass oils. Canadian biofuel leaders include: Iogen Corporation, Ensyn Technologies Inc. and Enerkem Corp.
Biofibres – Canadian hemp and flax crops are being converted for high value applications, such as textiles, plastic composites, insulation and paper. Residues from wheat straw and shives/hurds are being recycled into straw board, concrete reinforcing, filler for plastic composites and animal bedding. Canadian pioneers in this field include Schweitzer-Mauduit, which produces specialty paper, Stemergy which developed products for use in the auto sector, and Naturally Advanced Technologies which has patented a new technology that yields particularly fine fibre.
Bio-Industrial Oils - Canada has impressive agronomic advantages in the production of unsaturated oils from canola and flax. In addition, Canada is a world leader in plant genomics and has a number of centres of excellence in the development of products from oils that form the basis for fuels, lubricants, plastics, paints, inks, bio-chemicals and chemical products, such as linoleum.
Wastes from farm and food processing - Rising energy costs and stringent environmental standards are motivation to convert waste into energy or other by-products. Firms active in this area include Solanyl, which derives a biodegradable plastic from waste and Hymark Renewables, which converts manure to biogas.
