News

April 26, 2019

Burlington company receives $2 million in federal funding for developing eco-friendly products

This article first appeared on https://y108.ca/

April 25, 2019, Burlington, ON – A Burlington-based company is benefitting from an $11.2-million federal investment in Canada’s bioproducts industry.

Federal representatives were in Burlington on Thursday morning to make the announcement at Ecosynthetix, a renewable chemicals company that is receiving $2 million of that investment.

Burlington MP and Minister of Democratic Institutions Karina Gould said it’s great news for Burlington.

“We have a really innovative company right here in Burlington that’s doing important things to help protect the environment, to move towards a more sustainable economy, and deliver products that are meaningful for everyday Canadians,” said Gould.

The Government of Canada defines bioproducts as ‘renewable products other than food and feed that are derived from agricultural, aquatic or forestry resources, or municipal wastes.’

Ecosynthetix CEO Jeff MacDonald said their work is focused on developing eco-friendly alternatives to oil products that are used in chemicals used to treat wood and paper products. One of the projects the company is working on is developing environmentally friendly resins for adhesive binders in wood products, which Ecosynthetix says would provide the construction industry with a greener building product.

“We’re not anti-oil, but we think that there are some great places where renewables have a place today, and they can bring a sustainability advantage and a cost advantage, and perform like an oil product,” said MacDonald. “So why not use it and maybe prolong the life of the oil for where we really need it?”

Marie-Claude Bibeau, Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, said the bioproducts industry is also beneficial to those in the agriculture industry.

“Finding such innovative solutions and uses for residues means a lot for the farmers and these are business opportunities that we want to invest in,” said Bibeau. “For the good of the environment and for the good of our farmers and business around Canada.”

Other companies from the bioproducts industry, which is led by Bioindustrial Innovation Canada, are adding their own contributions for a total investment of more than $22 million.