This partnership will enable Nestlé to further accelerate the development of nutritious plant-based meat and dairy alternatives with favourable environmental footprint
Burcon NutraScience Corporation, a developer of plant-based proteins, has entered into a joint development agreement with Nestlé and Merit Functional Foods Corporation to tailor Burcon and Merit’s plant-based proteins for use in Nestlé food and beverage applications.
The joint agreement builds upon a long-term relationship among the parties covering ongoing innovations and the future supply of Burcon and Merit’s plant-based proteins from the commercial-scale production facility, which Merit is currently building.
Ryan Bracken, co-CEO of Merit, described the partnership with Nestlé is a “major milestone” for Merit, and elaborated: “Merit has already demonstrated the value of our novel proteins in plant-based foods. This new partnership helps build on this, and it’s a major step in developing the next generation of nutritious and delicious plant-based proteins that draw on the benefits of our novel proteins.”
The collaboration brings together Burcon’s capability in plant protein development with Nestlé’s expertise in the development, production and commercialisation of plant-based foods and beverages, and Merit’s protein production facility. The aim of the joint development is to tailor the functionality of Burcon and Merit’s plant-proteins, to be supplied from Merit’s production facility, for use by Nestlé in nutritious and great tasting plant-based meat and dairy alternatives.
Johann F. Tergesen, president and CEO of Burcon, concluded: “We are thrilled to be partnering with Nestlé, to customise our already exciting novel plant-based proteins. This collaboration among Burcon, Nestlé and Merit is about strategic innovation to deliver sustainable, great tasting, and highly nutritious plant-based proteins.”
