Canada's minister of agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau and member of parliament Bardish Chagger announced yesterday a $2,430,023 investment for P&P Optica Inc. through the AgriInnovate Program to help build and present its innovative, Canadian-made food inspection technology for meat processors.

The company has developed a smart imaging system to inspect meat automatically on the production line. The system analyzes the composition of food, evaluating properties like tenderness, freshness and its protein, water and fat content. It can detect imperfections and eliminate foreign bodies like plastic, bones and rubber. These tasks are done right on the production line in real time, generating information for processors to use to help improve their products, manage suppliers and optimize production.

This investment will support P&P Optica Inc. to build demonstration units that allow them to present their technology to potential users. P&P Optica Inc.'s mission is to help processors improve the safety and quality of their products, make the food supply more sustainable and reduce food waste.

The investment will also build a demonstration room to optimize their technology for use by potential meat processing clients. This hyperspectral imaging technology evaluates the safety and freshness of meat products by analyzing the colour and moisture. It also gives a large range of data to processors.

Investing in automated inspection technologies like P&P Optica Inc.'s smart imaging system creates new market opportunities, grows the economy, and keeps the Canadian meat industry sustainable.

"Canada's processors are adopting new technologies to increase production and offer quality products across the country and the world," said Bibeau. "P&P Optica Inc.'s technology gives processors essential information that provides many benefits, including helping to reduce food waste. Our government is committed to investing in innovative projects that support the long-term growth and success of our agriculture and agri-food sector."

"I applaud P&P Optica Inc. for its leadership in developing rapid, real-time technology to evaluate meat quality," added Chagger. "Not only is the company an innovator in Canada and internationally, it is also a community leader right here in Waterloo. Our support for the company's innovative approach will help meat processors improve quality and sustainability."

"P&P Optica Inc. is grateful for the support of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and AgriFood through the AgriInnovate program. PPO is focused on working with food processors to improve the safety and quality of our food supply, while reducing waste," said Olga Pawluczyk, CEO of P&P Optica Inc. "We're excited about the opportunity to promote our automated inspection system, which is already operating in plants across the US, to Canadian meat processors. We believe the Canadian meat industry, already a global leader in quality products, can increase our competitive edge even further by using technologies like PPO's Smart Imaging System."