A joint effort between Canadian and UK organizations has commenced to develop plant-based burger ingredients using Canadian-grown legumes and sunflower crops. The project includes Lovingly Made Flour Mills and Botaneco from Canada, collaborating with Stars UK R&D and the University of Leeds.
The initiative focuses on overcoming challenges related to moisture retention and juiciness in plant-based burgers by processing Canadian legumes and sunflower into protein-rich ingredients and innovative fat components. These ingredients will be incorporated into new burger formulations for international restaurant distribution.
“Canada has an unparalleled opportunity to supply the world with ingredients.”
Protein Industries Canada and Innovate UK support the project, facilitating collaboration between Canadian and UK agrifood companies to address protein demand in both markets.
Robert Hunter, CEO of Protein Industries Canada, stated, “Canada has an unparalleled opportunity to supply the world with ingredients that are not only functional and nutritious, but also sustainable.” He added that aligning Canadian agricultural products with global markets could enhance the country’s food processing sector and increase export capacity.
The project builds on prior work funded by Protein Industries Canada. Botaneco’s development of oleosome-based fat systems and Lovingly Made Flour Mills’ expertise in extrusion processing of legumes will be combined and optimized. The University of Leeds will conduct testing to verify that the new ingredients meet desired functional, taste, and texture requirements.
Consumer expectation vs. performance
James Szarko, CEO of Botaneco, described a discrepancy between consumer expectations and current plant-based meat product performance. He referenced previous Protein Industries Canada-supported developments in Purezome oilbodies and protein ingredients extracted from Canadian crops. “The commercial success of this project enables the expansion from commodity to value-added ingredients through scale-up of current manufacturing capacity, here in Canada,” Szarko stated.
The collaboration utilizes Canadian agricultural strengths by adding value through innovative processing techniques and targets increased economic output within the agrifood sector. Canada’s agrifood market is projected to grow to $25 billion in value.
Heidi Dutton, CEO of Lovingly Made Flour Mills, said, “This partnership allows us to combine our expertise in legume processing and extrusion with cutting-edge international research to create better plant-based products—ones that deliver on taste, texture and nutrition while supporting Canadian farmers and processors.”
