CONNECTING TO AGRICULTURE

Our initial commercial project will engage partnership with ​​Western Canadian farmers. They will be our source for starting biomass feedstocks that drive our first commercial project.

Annual and year-to-year feedstock assurance is mission critical. Our feedstock assurance model is built on feedstock diversification. Our initial feedstock will be surplus (wheat) straw and pea pods, but may subsequently include other biomass. 

Wheat Straw: We assume that growers return wheat straw back to their fields three years out of four. We will utilize the ‘one-in-four’ wheat straw. 

Pea Pods: In addition to providing NovaGreen Fibre with a viable alternate feedstock source, utilizing pea pods will:

1. Employ many of the same grower resources as wheat straw. Peas are a significant crop in most Alberta crop rotations now.
2. Leverage the surging global demand for high protein peas.
3. Add significant value and market diversification to the remnant pods. 

​Biomass availability models confirm this approach. This feedstock diversification approach also enables our commercial feedstock requirements to be met within a very reasonable radius of our production facility location – and this holds true even with a significantly larger feedstock requirement over time. 

We look forward to being fair and integrated partners with our grower community. The 'circular economy' only works if all players are working in synchronization.

OUR APPROACH ENABLES THE FOLLOWING PROJECT BENEFITS:

• Minimal transportation costs
• Simplified logistics and feedstock coordination
• Optimized environmental impact. We aim for a minimal carbon footprint, and avoiding long haul transport contributes to this approach
• Community integration. We aim to integrate into the fabric of the region we locate in.
• Regional economic benefit. The 'spinoff' multiplier impact of our facility will be realized via this approach. 
  
• Product Traceability. We will be able to provide ‘field-to-shelf’ traceability using this model, and providing all end users, whether food manufacturers or supplement users, with validated source assurance. ​​ ​

Model Replication

The model can be replicated in multiple geographies. And, combined with our flexible refining technology, the approach can leverage a wide variety of agricultural and forestry based feedstock sources.