Sask. facility to produce eco-friendly fertilizer made from peas, lentils and oats
Protein Industries Canada and a group of companies are building a $19 million facility to produce an environmentally friendly fertilizer in Rosetown, Sask.
When completed, the plant will produce up to 6,500 tons per year of micronutrient fertilizer and create 25 jobs, Protein Industries Canada said in a news release.
Soileos is billed as a "sustainable, non-polluting, climate-positive micronutrient fertilizer" made from pea, lentil and oat hulls created from food processing.
Field trials on broad-acre crops such as durum, lentils and peas "demonstrated how Soileos transports zinc, manganese, and iron to plants – leading to improved protein content, yields and soil health, while increasing returns for farmers, minimizing environmental impacts, and bringing value to low-value by-products," the release said.
Protein Industries Canada is an industry-led, not-for-profit organization created to position Canada as a global source of high-quality plant protein and plant-based co-products. The federal government, through Protein Industries Canada, invested $7 million in the project.
The venture will be operated jointly by AGT Foods and Lucent, which operates as AGT Soileos.
AGT Foods founder and CEO Murad Al-Katib said Soileos returns carbon to the soil and reduces the need for nitrogen fertilizer application in future years.
“As farmers meet the challenge of boosting the sustainability of their agricultural management systems, the smart use of fertilizer will be key to achieving meaningful reductions in the carbon intensity of our cropping system,” he said in the release.
The facility is to be operational in October.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
Crypt near Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner could fetch US$400,000 at auction
A one-space mausoleum crypt in the vicinity of Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner will go on auction Saturday, when it is expected to reach between US$200,000 and $400,000.
This Toronto restaurant is no longer accepting tips. Here's how it's going
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Premiers not being truthful about carbon tax, Trudeau says while sparks fly in Ottawa
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Conservative premiers across the country are 'not telling the truth' when it comes to the carbon tax. Trudeau's comments came as fresh sparks were flying in Ottawa at a recalled House of Commons committee.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
What new auto insurance reforms will mean for Ontarians, if they get introduced
Ontario has among the highest rates for auto insurance premiums in Canada -- just below Alberta and Nova Scotia -- however, the introduction of an insurance reform in the provincial budget could soon lower prices.