The Honourable Rob Moore, Regional Minister for New Brunswick and Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency), on behalf of the Honourable Greg Rickford, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, today announced an investment of almost $1 million to support the transformation of New Brunswick’s forest industry through the commercialization of an innovative technology.

Through the Investments in Forest Industry Transformation (IFIT) program, the Government of Canada is investing $982,000 to enable Irving Pulp & Paper to complete construction of a state-of-the-art mechanized facility at its Sussex Tree Nursery that will produce up to four million improved seedlings per year through a process known as somatic embryogenesis. The process is a more effective way of creating and selecting the best trees for planting. This breakthrough could lead to higher-value Canadian planted trees and much faster regeneration of Canada’s managed forests — great benefits for jobs and growth in Canada’s forest industry.

The project is the first large-scale advanced seedling plant in Canada that incorporates both the somatic embryogenesis process and Irving’s patented Endophyte-Enhanced Seedling Technology. This technology enhances the seedlings’ resistance and will enable Irving to inoculate tens of millions of trees against attacks from insects and fungi.

The funding announced today is in addition to the $1.4 million provided to this project under the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency’s Atlantic Innovation Program, for a total Government of Canada contribution of almost $2.4 million.

Through this support, Irving Pulp & Paper will be able to substantially increase its seedling production in a cost-effective way.

Quick Facts

• The Harper Government investments are complemented by investments of $500,000 by the Government of New Brunswick and approximately $2.1 million from Irving Pulp and Paper. Somatic embryogenesis is a seedling reproductive technique invented by research scientists at Natural Resources Canada’s Atlantic Forestry Centre.
• Once completed, the new facility will create two new jobs over the next two years (in addition to the current three) and at least five additional jobs over the next four to five years.
• Canada’s forest products sector is an important part of our economy, contributing $19.75 billion to the country’s GDP in 2013 while supporting 216,500 jobs across the country.

Quotes

“Today’s announcement demonstrates our government’s commitment to investing in science and helping to bring new ideas from the laboratory to the market. This project supports our goal of creating jobs, growth and prosperity in the forest industry in New Brunswick and across the country.”

The Honourable Rob Moore
Regional Minister for New Brunswick and Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency)