Burcon NutraScience Corporation claims that a third-party engineering report relating to the company's protein separation and purification technology has proved the process to be financially viable.
The report confirms that Burcon's canola protein manufacturing process can produce Puratein and Supertein on a large scale at a significant yield and low production costs.
Burcon engaged Earth Tech Canada to prepare an engineering report on the feasibility of the company's technology and to conduct a review and assessment of the economics of producing Burcon's Puratein and Supertein canola protein isolates in a full-scale manufacturing facility.
The assessment conducted by Earth Tech involved confirmation of existing production parameters, product (protein isolate) quality, yield and initial order of magnitude costs of operation. The actual cost of production can only be determined through the development of a full-scale production facility. Nevertheless the analysis prepared by Earth Tech provides order of magnitude estimates which imply economic viability of Burcon's technology.
The cost to produce plant proteins is significantly lower than that of animal proteins, casein, whey and egg, which are expensive to produce. One of the drivers responsible for the rapid growth of plant proteins is their ability to compete with animal proteins both nutritionally and functionally at a significantly lower price.
"The Earth Tech report confirms our belief that Burcon's separation technology is scalable and repeatable", said Randy Willardsen, Burcon's senior vice president of process. "Our process is ready to take the next step: development of a full-scale facility."
Earth Tech Canada is a subsidiary of Earth Tech. Founded in 1970, Earth Tech is an international provider of global water management and transportation, engineering and environmental services. Earth Tech is headquartered in Long Beach, California, and employs more than 8,000 people in nearly 200 offices worldwide. Burcon is a research and development company developing a portfolio of composition, application and process patents around its plant protein extraction and purification technology.