As climate pressures, consumer demand, and economic imperatives converge, the global food sector stands at the brink of systemic change. It isn’t a question of if, but of how fast.
A recent conversation on The Plantbased Business Hour hosted by VegTech Invest’s CEO, Elysabeth Alfano, featured Dr. Sylvain Charlebois, Senior Director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. Their discussion reinforced a critical message: the time to invest in structural shifts—across yield innovation, value-added infrastructure, and supply chain transformation—is now.
Canada’s role in the global shift to sustainable protein
Dr. Charlebois described how Canada, a major agricultural player, is rapidly pivoting from traditional meat-centric models toward what he terms a “democratic protein play.” This emerging model emphasizes pulses and legumes like lentils, chickpeas, and peas—crops that are not only drought-tolerant but central to a scalable, affordable, and sustainable food future. At the heart of this movement is AGT Food and Ingredients, founded by Murad Al-Katib, whose vertically integrated operations out of Saskatchewan exemplify how visionary leadership and agri-food innovation can reshape export markets and inspire farmers to adopt climate-resilient, high-margin crops.
Dr. Charlebois explains this further in a clip from the interview here:
Infrastructure: The hidden driver of food innovation
Yet yield innovation alone does not drive transformation. Dr. Charlebois emphasized a shift in focus from the farm to the full supply chain—particularly to distribution and processing. This aligns closely with the thesis at VegTech™ Invest: transformational change requires infrastructure. Several new crushing plants are currently under construction across Canada, designed to add value at the source and reduce dependency on international supply chains. These facilities will unlock efficiencies in plant-based protein processing, localize economic benefits, and support the next generation of food-tech companies.
Investment implications: From innovation to execution
The implications are clear for investors: food system transformation is no longer just about product innovation—it’s about building the architecture for scale. From bio-industrials developing climate-resilient cultivars to midstream companies investing in plant-protein processing, a new structure is emerging to support the rapid adoption of sustainable, nutritious alternatives to animal protein.
As these developments continue to be tracked at VegTech™ Invest, there is a robust and growing opportunity for investors who want to participate in the intersection of agriculture, technology, and sustainability. With the right infrastructure in place, the next phase of food system innovation can accelerate—and the market is ready.
Listen to the full audio podcast here. Watch the full video interview here.
Elysabeth Alfano is the CEO of VegTech™ Invest, advisor to a food innovation ETF. She is a consultant to multi-national companies focused on sustainability and an advisor to C-Suite interested in understanding the growth of whitespaces in the food industry. She is also the host of the podcast, The Plantbased Business Hour on iTunes and vegconomist.
