$1.9M supports bio-fibre quality research projects

Winnipeg, MB – Manitoba’s Composites Innovation Centre is receiving over $1.9 million in combined federal-provincial funding from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development to support FibreCITY, North America’s first agriculture fibre-grading centre of excellence program.

The centre will receive up to $715,000 to install a specialized suite of equipment dedicated to the evaluation of fibre crops. In addition the centre will develop what it says will be the world’s first informatics system for agricultural fibre grading and establish standards for fibre and product quality.

The centre will also receive additional funding of up to $1.27 million to establish a quality-testing site for natural fibres used in biomaterial applications and product development projects.

Founded in 2003, the Composites Innovation Centre’s mandate is to support and stimulate economic growth through innovative research, development and industrial application of composite materials technology.

“One of our main objectives is to conduct technology development and commercialization activities that link agricultural producers to consumers, generating an increased level of income and opportunities at the farm gate and in rural communities,” said Sean McKay, president and CEO of the Composites Innovation Centre. “We are appreciative of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Province of Manitoba in further supporting our efforts to overcome a major barrier for the industrial adoption of natural fibres by developing methods and standards that will be used to guarantee their quality.”