Agrifood pilot facility opens in Lethbridge

A new fully-commercialized pea processing and testing centre is now open in southern Alberta.

PIP International, a Canadian-based agrifood company, celebrated the $20-million pilot facility today in Lethbridge.

A news release from the province said the pilot facility is the first step in testing PIP’s new innovative extraction technology that will significantly improve the quality, purity and environmental impact of the protein isolates before scaling up production.

The second part of the two-phase project will establish a $150-million yellow pea protein facility in Lethbridge. Construction on the facility will begin later this year.

Once operational, the facility will create 100 new jobs, process about 126,000 tonnes of yellow peas annually and support more than $75 million in annual pea contracts for local and regional growers.

Lethbridge Mayor Blaine Hyggen states he is thrilled PIP chose his city.

“This kind of investment speaks to our city’s ability to attract big business and economy builders to the region while providing a stable and prosperous outlook for our future,” he said in the release.

In partnership with the federal government, Alberta awarded PIP $1 million through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership.

Nate Horner, the province’s minister of agriculture, forestry and rural economic development, said that “with demand for plant-based foods increasing globally, investing in PIP’s pilot facility is part of a larger strategy to grow and diversify Alberta’s emerging agrifood sector.”