Lévis, Quebec, November 22, 2013 – Acting on behalf of the Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, the Honourable Steven Blaney, Member of Parliament for Lévis-Bellechasse and Les Etchemins and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, today announced that the Ag-Bio Centre business incubator has been granted funding to continue supporting innovative startups in the biotechnology, agricultural biotechnology and environmental sciences sectors.
“To ensure sustainable, job-creating growth, our government actively supports organizations that, like Ag-Bio Centre, are assisting with the start-up of innovative businesses,”said Minister Blaney.
The organization’s project involves hiring a specialized resource and, over the next two years, increasing support to incubated firms, in partnership with the Québec Metro High-Tech Park, Centre de développement bioalimentaire du Québec and TransBIOTech research centre, among others. This initiative is expected to help build metropolitan Québec’s economic potential in value-added industries and lead to the start-up of some 15 companies and eventual creation of 30 jobs.
For many of Quebec’s life sciences enterprises, expanding operations requires tapping into new external markets. As such, Ag-Bio Centre has broadened its mission and will now provide guidance to businesses in their export efforts.
This assistance, granted in the form of $280,000 in non-repayable funding over two years, has been awarded through Canada Economic Development’s Quebec Economic Development Program.
- 30 -
