Investment to Help Turn Seafood Waste to Green Energy and Fertilizer
By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
The Government of Canada announced on Wednesday that it will be investing $458,000 to help create new uses for agricultural seafood waste that will provide economic benefits to Newfoundland and Labrador.
The funding announcement was made by the Honourable Peter Penashue, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Member of Parliament for Labrador, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz.
"We are very excited about the potential results from this collaborative research project. The envisioned technology and partnerships represent an innovative approach to enhancing the day-to-day farm operations in an environmentally sound manner, while ensuring the sector remains competitive," said Robert Walsh, President of Glenview Farms Inc. "This type of project will not only have a significant impact on the way we run our operation but can have a positive impact on the agriculture sector as a whole."
The funds will help assist the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Agriculture (NLFA) and Glenview Farms - with three key projects to turn the seafood waste into green energy and fertilizer. The funding will be allocated to the following projects:
•$170,000 – Research looking at creating concentrated liquid fertilizer from salmon by-products
•$124,400 – Research looking to anaerobic digestion technology to recycle organic matter into fertilizer
•$163,600 - will assist Glenview Farms to study the use of a filter process that would extract water from dairy cattle manure to create more effective liquid fertilizer and compostable waste
The funding announcement is made possible through the Canadian Agriculture Adaptation Program also known as CAPP. The Harper Government has been providing investments that focus on research and innovation as part of its Growing Forward 2 policy framework.