Merit Functional Foods is a Canadian producer of plant-based protein ingredients that extracts proteins from Canadian-grown yellow peas and canola seeds. Its ingredients are used in products ranging from vegan protein powders to plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, and Nestlé is already signed on as a customer. The federal government announced CAD $100 million to help finance Merit’s new 94,000 square foot agricultural production facility in Winnipeg, which is slated to be fully operational by the end of this year. The company plans to use 100% Canadian input, supporting farmers who grow the canola and peas used in its products. Financing for the facility also includes loans and a repayable grant, indicating significant public-sector backing for its production expansion. The investment aligns with a rapidly growing alternative-protein market that the National Research Council Canada projects will grow at about 14% annually to 2024. Merit Functional Foods is building a state-of-the-art 94,000-square-foot production facility in Winnipeg to produce a portfolio of pea and canola protein ingredients. The company uses Burcon NutraScience’s patented and disruptive protein extraction technology, described in the article as having been in development for more than 19 years. Merit positions itself to deliver high-purity, non-GMO canola protein—which the company calls the world’s first—and a range of pea protein ingredients with strong functional and nutritional values. Merit was established in 2019 and says it will expand capacity to meet market demand, improve throughput, reduce energy consumption, and lower its environmental footprint. The company anticipates adding more than 240 jobs as it scales production and completes the facility (targeted for fourth quarter 2020 in the article). Merit is partnering with Pitura Seeds, The Winning Combination, and the Manitoba Food Development Centre on genetics, seed standards, functionality testing, and by-product applications.

Total raised

$140M

Funding rounds

5

Latest round

Debt Financing

Latest activity

Jun 2020