Belleville, Ontario, April 22, 2016 — Loyalist College is pleased to announce that it has been awarded funding to collaborate with Entomo Farms on an applied research project to be housed within the College’s state-of-the-art Supercritical CO2 Extraction Applied Research Laboratory. Under the lead of Loyalist College Biosciences Professor Dr. Kari Kramp, this research project aims to validate Entomo Farms’ scientific methods, illustrating the tremendous environmental, social and nutritional benefits of insect farming and the adoption of insect protein as an integral part of human, pet and livestock diets. This project is made possible by the Government of Ontario through Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE), as well as the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).
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“Entomo Farms’ innovative approach to producing protein for human consumption using insects is an exciting and important project for Loyalist to research through our Supercritical CO2 Extraction Applied Research Laboratory. We are grateful for the support of OCE and NSERC, which will allow us to investigate the scientific application of insect protein and to identify the ‘shelf life’ during which insects remain suitable for human consumption. Since opening the CO2 Laboratory, we have helped a number of Ontario businesses to innovate and build capacity through applied research applications. We continue to establish new industry partnerships that provide our students with relevant, high-quality learning experiences.” – Maureen Piercy, President and CEO, Loyalist College
“We are very excited at Entomo Farms to announce that we have received approval to work with Loyalist College in the Supercritical CO2 Extraction Applied Research Laboratory. We are the largest insect farm in North America that raises insects for human consumption to help improve people’s health thanks to the impressive nutritional profile of insects, while being sustainable for the planet. We look forward to working with the research team at Loyalist to provide us with the necessary results we need in order to bring our cricket powder line to market, by determining the shelf life and ‘best before’ date for our cricket powder packaging.” – Jarrod Goldin, Co-Founder and President, Entomo Farms
About Loyalist Research Services Office
Through Loyalist Research Services Office, the College collaborates with industry partners in various fields on applied research projects, creating amazing learning experiences for students and faculty of all disciplines. The College has had success with funding support through the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) on a variety of projects and in March 2015, the College announced its first award from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). In addition, Loyalist has eligibility status with Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and plans to expand research opportunities through Canada’s other research granting agency, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Having access to funding support through OCE, NSERC and SSHRC allows Loyalist to increase capacity to work with local industries and businesses, support faculty who are committed to conducting research and to facilitating student research experiences. It has opened the door to additional research and development opportunities, which benefit the Quinte region.
About Entomo Farms
Based in Norwood, Ontario, Entomo Farms is motivated to be recognized as a world leader in providing protein alternatives in the form of the finest organic and world-class insect proteins with great tasting products and recipes. Additionally, Entomo Farms is striving to enable, encourage and educate more people on the relevance and socio-political impact of their protein carbon footprint.
About Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) Inc. (www.oce-ontario.org)
Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) drives the commercialization of cutting-edge research to build the economy of tomorrow and secure Ontario’s global competitiveness. OCE fosters the training and development of the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs and is a key partner with Ontario’s industry, universities, colleges, research hospitals, domestic and foreign investors, and government ministries. A champion of leading-edge technologies, best practices, innovation, entrepreneurship and research, OCE invests in such areas as advanced health, information and communications technology, digital media, advanced materials and manufacturing, agri-food, aerospace, transportation, energy, and the environment including water and mining. OCE is a key partner in delivering Ontario’s Innovation Agenda as a member of the province’s Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs (ONE), which helps Ontario-based entrepreneurs and industry rapidly grow their company and create jobs. Learn more at www.onebusiness.ca
About NSERC
NSERC invests over $1 billion each year in natural sciences and engineering research in Canada. Our investments deliver discoveries – valuable world-firsts in knowledge claimed by a brain trust of over 11,000 professors. Our investments enable partnerships and collaborations that connect industry with discoveries and the people behind them. Researcher-industry partnerships established by NSERC help inform R&D, solve scale-up challenges, and reduce the risks of developing high-potential technology. NSERC also provides scholarships and hands-on training experience for more than 30,000 post-secondary students and post-doctoral fellows. These young researchers will be the next generation of science and engineering leaders in Canada.
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Media Contact: Kerry Lorimer, Director of Marketing and Communications,
Loyalist College, klorimer@loyalistc.on.ca, (613) 969-1913, ext. 2536