Agri-Value Opportunities

Dry Peas

• Pea demand globally continues to increase as consumers become more focused on health and sustainability.
• Significant opportunity exists to expand pea processing capacity, such as dry fractionation or protein isolate manufacturing, in Saskatchewan.

Lentils

• Value-added opportunities exist for splitting and packaging lentils.
• Additional opportunities include the fractionation and milling of lentils to produce starch and protein-enriched flour. Polyphenols can be extracted and isolated from lentil hulls and marketed as a natural antioxidant.

Canola

• The province produces approximately 10 million metric tonnes of canola annually. The canola crush industry has announced intentions to build enough capacity to process all of that production.
• Canola processing represents the largest portion of revenue in Saskatchewan’s value-added sector.

Flax

• Significant opportunity exists to increase the capacity to crush flaxseed to produce oil, cake, meal and other food ingredients within Saskatchewan.
• New opportunities exist around flax fibre, peptides and protein which can be used as an energy source and for the development of industrial and construction materials.

Hemp

• Hemp is a unique crop that Saskatchewan processors utilize with a whole-plant approach across multiple end-use industries.
• The stalks can be used for fibres and textiles, while the seeds are rich in oils, proteins and omega fatty acids. The extraction of the seeds has various applications in the food industry as well as in the therapeutical industry through CBD production.

Oats

• Oats are an excellent source of dietary fibre. Due to the nutritional benefits of oats, and being gluten-free, there has been increasing interest in using them as a functional food.
• Opportunities exist around increasing the production of semi-processed or “clipped” oats, oat protein and oat beverages.

Non-Durum Wheat

• Significant opportunities exist to increase processing capacity right at the source, including the production of milled flours for breads and bakery products.
• Wheat flour can be further processed into purified starch and protein isolates (gluten) through wet processing, separation and drying.

Durum

• Processing opportunities exist for the production of pasta and couscous.
• Durum wheat is used to produce puffed and hot cereals, desserts, filler for pastries, various types of bread and high-quality noodles.

Cattle

• Saskatchewan is the second-largest beef-cattle producing province in Canada and a world-class provider of beef genetics.
• Saskatchewan has more than six million hectares of natural or seeded pasture and is in close proximity to feed supply.
• This access provides value-added opportunities in backgrounding and finishing cattle.

Hogs

• Saskatchewan offers world-class hog genetics, low-cost of production, and excellent herd biosecurity.
• With one of the lowest animal densities in the world, Saskatchewan has opportunities to increase hog inventories.
• Saskatchewan is home to western Canada’s only cull sow facility, and over 75 independent abattoirs and further meat processing operations. There is further opportunity for investment to expand pork processing in the province as a large proportion of hogs are finished outside of Saskatchewan.

Renewable Fuels and Biomass Energy

• Saskatchewan is a world leading producer of energy crops, such as canola or wheat, which can be processed and refined into renewable fuels.
• Field residues, such as straw and stover, are increasingly being considered as feedstock for energy generation, including electricity feedstock, biogas or fuel production.

Biomaterials

• Agricultural feedstocks can provide the building blocks for a number of important components, such as plastics, fibres and composites.
• Advantages of these products include high strength-to-weight ratios and accelerated biodegradation.