Merit Functional Foods, A solution-oriented food ingredients company from Canada, recently announced the official start of its nearly 9,000-square-meter plant-based protein manufacture in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The company has completed construction and has begun commissioning and optimizing its pea and rapeseed protein production for use in food and beverage applications.
The accelerated construction project of Merit began in the fall of 2019 and was completed in December 2020. According to the company, the new plant is the first commercially produced plant in the world that can produce food grade rapeseed protein. In addition, pure pea protein specifically for food, drink and nutrients is to be produced here.
“This is an important step for us. We have built our product portfolio and our new production facility over the past year and a half. Now is the time to redefine vegetable proteins, ”said Ryan Bracken, co-founder and co-CEO of Merit.
The new plants, which process both peas and rapeseed, will require an initial raw material of about 25,000 tons per year. With the capacity for future expansion of the facility, raw material requirements may exceed 100,000 tons per year. Merit looks forward to working with various brands in the future in search of high-quality plant-based protein alternatives in 2021 and beyond.
