Merit Functional Foods and its technology partner Burcon NutraScience said they entered a joint development agreement (JDA) with Nestlé. The goal of the joint agreement is to develop and commercialize Merit’s novel plant protein ingredients for use in Nestlé’s plant-based foods and beverages.
The joint agreement commences a long-term relationship among the parties, covering Merit’s novel proteins. Merit expects by the fourth quarter of this year to construct and open its commercial-scale production facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
At its state-of-the-art facility, Merit will produce various plant-based protein ingredients using Burcon’s proprietary and patented extraction and purification technology. Officials say Burcon has been developing its plant-based protein technology for more than 19 years.
“Partnering with Nestlé, a global leader in food and nutrition, is a great milestone for Merit Functional Foods,” said Merit Co-CEO Ryan Bracken. “Merit has already demonstrated the impact of our novel proteins in plant-based foods. This new partnership helps build on this, and it’s a major step in developing the next generation of nutritious and delicious plant-based products that draw on the benefits of our novel proteins.”
“We are thrilled to be partnering with Nestlé to optimize these already exciting novel plant proteins,” added Burcon’s President and CEO Johann F. Tergesen. “This collaboration among Burcon, Nestlé, and Merit is about strategically innovating for the future.”
For more information on Merit Functional Foods, visit www.meritfoods.com.
About Merit Functional Foods
Established in 2019, Merit Functional Foods is committed to exceeding expectations for plant-based protein, providing the market with the highest quality protein ingredients and blends that offer unmatched purity, exceptional taste, and excellent solubility. Merit is building a state-of-the-art production facility in Winnipeg, where it will produce a portfolio of pea and canola protein ingredients with exceptional functional and nutritional values.
About Burcon NutraScience Corporation
Burcon is a global technology leader in the development of plant-based proteins. With over 270 issued patents and more than 260 additional patent applications, developed over a span of more than twenty years, Burcon has grown an extensive portfolio of composition, application, and process patents covering novel plant-based proteins derived from pea, canola, soy, hemp, sunflower seed and more. In 2019, Merit Functional Foods Corporation was established in a joint venture by Burcon and three veteran food industry executives. Merit Foods is building a state-of-the-art protein production facility in Manitoba, Canada, where it will produce, under license, Burcon’s novel pea and canola protein ingredients.
