November 17, 2014 – Winnipeg, Manitoba – Agriculture and Agri-food Canada
Manitoba’s place as a national leader in grain research, production and processing will be enhanced through three research projects funded under Growing Forward 2, Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development Minister Ron Kostyshyn announced today.
These projects will receive $341,000 and support the goals of the Grain Innovation Hub, a framework announced by the ministers in May 2014 to make strategic investments in grain production, research and processing in Manitoba.
Projects will receive funding from the Growing Innovation - Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative (GI-ARDI) and include:
- validating food substitutes for cholesterol-lowering drugs (TM Therapeutics, $175,000);
- measuring whether eating flaxseed can help people with high blood pressure (St. Boniface Research Foundation and the Canadian Centre for Agri-Food Research in Health and Medicine, $136,000); and
- breeding buckwheat varieties with new characteristics and health benefits (ManCan Genetics Ltd., $30,000).
Project proponents and other stakeholders will also invest more than $865,700 in these three research projects.
In total, 32 projects have received funding this year through GI-ARDI and more than $3.2 million will be invested in industry-led research for the crops, livestock, agri-environment and food sectors. For more information about GI-ARDI, visit www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture under Growing Forward 2.
The federal and provincial governments are investing $176 million in Manitoba under Growing Forward 2, a five-year, federal-provincial-territorial policy framework to advance the agriculture industry, helping producers and processors become more innovative and competitive in world markets.
Jeff English
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Gerry Ritz
613-773-1059
Media Relations
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
613-773-7972
1-866-345-7972
Follow us on Twitter: @AAFC_Canada
Caedmon Malowany
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Ron Kostyshyn
204-945-1494
