46 GERMINATION.CA JULY 2018 member of PIC and itself a bioscience industry alliance of research institutions, private firms and other groups that started in 1989. Keller adds that “it’s important that PIC is sustained over the long term, 25 to 50 years, so it can do its part to make Canada as a whole much more competitive.” In terms of seed-related projects that PIC may under- take, Keller notes that breeding seed with higher protein and better-quality protein are certainly possibilities, as is breeding to make protein easier to process. “Canola is a $27-billion industry, mostly based on oil,” he says. “If you can remove the hull that adheres to the seed more easily, even breed for seed where the hull is not so strongly adhered, that would save a lot of money and open up opportunities for canola protein. Most canola protein (meal) is used in the U.S. dairy industry, but there are many more opportunities in companion animal, aquaculture and other markets.” Canola Council of Canada (CCC) Chair David Dzisiak agrees that PIC could be transformative for the canola industry. SUPERCLUSTER IS ONE of the latest buzzwords being bandied about in the ag media these days. A cluster, as defined by Canada’s Ministry of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, is a “dense area of business activity containing a critical mass of large and small com- panies, post-secondary and other research institutions” that “energize the economy and act as engines of growth.” Superclusters build on the advantages of clusters. “These innovation hotbeds,” states the Ministry’s web- site, “have stronger connections, a long-term competitive advantage, global brand recognition and an outsized posi- tive impact on job creation and economic growth.” Through its new Innovation Superclusters Initiative, the feds are investing up to $950 million over five years in five select superclusters “with the greatest potential to build world-leading innovation ecosystems” and “secure Canada's future as an innovation leader.” The initiative is specifically designed to help Canadian companies grap- ple “with an unprecedented rate of change,” and partner in new ways to “remain at the forefront of competition, address key challenges and build a shared advantage.” One of these five superclusters is Protein Industries Canada (PIC), a group of over 120 private firms, institu- tions and other stakeholders across Western Canada and beyond, allied to fully develop the potential of plant- based proteins from pulses, grains and oilseeds, from canola to hemp. PIC notes that plant-based protein is already a $13-billion market of which Canada currently holds a minimal share, and that the global need for plant protein will greatly increase in the decades to come. The federal funding received by PIC supplements roughly $400 million of cash, in-kind and venture capi- tal commitments already made by PIC members. PIC’s projects — which are expected to be finalized this fall — will focus on crop breeding, crop production, value- added processing and export development. Wilf Keller, president and CEO of Saskatchewan-based Ag-West Bio, believes superclusters can be transformational for agriculture and the seed industry in that they involve a large number of organizations working cohesively and setting aside provincial borders. Ag-West Bio is a founding We take a peek at exciting seed projects that could energize the economy and act as engines of growth. Treena Hein SUPERCLUSTERS AND ACCELERATORS MIGHT TRANSFORM AN INDUSTRY Wilf Keller, president and CEO of Saskatchewan-based Ag-West Bio.