Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Saint-Hyacinthe Research and Development Centre's Industrial Program
Due to the COVID-19 situation, the Industrial Program temporarily stopped its activities and closed the Pilot Plant in March, 2020.
The Industrial Program and associated Pilot Plant remain an important part of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s efforts to support the food processing industry. The Department recognizes that increasing access to our worksites is an important step to advancing our science priorities.
As such, the Industrial Program has begun the gradual resumption of a limited number of activities while maintaining the health and safety of our employees and clients. The Industrial Program and associated Pilot Plant clients will be notified when the centre is able to welcome them into the facilities safely.
For questions or comments, please contact aafc.programmeindustriel-industrialprogram.aac@canada.ca; 450-768-7999.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Saint-Hyacinthe Research and Development Centre's Industrial Program helps agri-food companies with small-scale food processing and testing needs and fosters innovation in the area of food research. (Watch the Industrial Program video)
Objectives
Helps agri-food companies with small-scale food processing and testing needs and fosters innovation in the area of food research.
Program Delivery
The Centre's facilities, located in St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, provide clients with direct access to sophisticated equipment and a versatile Research & Development (R&D) environment. Through the Industrial Program, companies can lease multifunctional pilot plants and access a full range of food processing equipment, as well as support, from experienced technologists including service of sensory analysis. Various fees apply. Equipment can be adapted, moved or even modified to respond to clients' needs. This versatility ensures a great deal of flexibility which is crucial for successful R&D. Through the Industrial Program, clients can process various commodities, such as milk (cow, goat, etc.) and dairy products, meat products, fruits and vegetables, cereals, and other food ingredients. Past clients of the Industrial Program have successfully developed a variety of food products.
Check out the Industrial Program video to see how the Industrial Program can become your secret ingredient for success.
To access the facilities, fill out and sign the application form. If you are a new client or a client who has not done business with AAFC in the past two years, you must also fill out a client account application form. The Manager, Integrated Services and Industrial Program or a technical co-ordinator will contact you in order to prepare a contractual agreement prior to the beginning of the project.
Resources
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List of pilot equipment
The Industrial Program possesses multifunctional pilot plants containing equipment designed to carry out the processes used in almost every sector of the food industry. Between 2016 and 2018, an investment exceeding $20 million has enabled the upgrade of plant equipment. The upgrade modernized and improved the plant's scientific and technological capacity, allowing federal researchers to better support innovation, adoption and sustainability in the sector.
The pilot plant directly supports the food processing industry by providing facilities that foster innovation. This includes the development of new or improved products, adopting technologies that boost productivity, and support for new enterprises.
Search the pilot equipment list
Sale of equipment
If the equipment you are looking for does not appear on this list, please let us know. Although we cannot guarantee that we will buy the desired equipment, your suggestions will help us to draw up a list of priorities to better respond to the needs of Canadian industries.
If you are a supplier and want to bid on equipment tenders, please visit Buyandsell.gc.ca where tenders will posted regularly.
We will also be disposing of some equipment. If you are interested in buying some, please visit the federal government's official website for Crown asset sales regularly, at GCSurplus.
Procedures
Clients of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Food Research and Development Centre's Industrial Program can develop various products. The list below represents only a portion of the procedures available through the Program.
Procedures (partial list)
- Biomass and metabolite production
- Cheesemaking and cheese aging
- Coagulation
- Cooking
- Drying
- Evaporation
- Fermentation
- Filtration
- Freeze-drying
- Freezing
- Grinding
- High-pressure processing
- Homogenization
- Irradiation
- Mixing, emulsification
- Packaging and processing
- Pasteurization (thermal, filtration, ultra high pressure)
- Pressing
- Smoking
- Sterilization (canning, UHT, aseptic processes)
- Texturization, extrusion
- Three-phase centrifugation (liquid-liquid-solid)
- Two-phase centrifugation (liquid-liquid, solid-liquid)
Other available facilities
- Fully computerized sensory evaluation laboratory
- Crossroad for Food Innovation Technology (Business incubator)
- 4 confined pilot plants including services, office, storage room and cook room
- 2 laboratories for emerging businesses
- 40 controlled atmosphere rooms
- 20 high-security offices
- Microbiology, biotechnology, biochemistry, physiology and chemical analysis laboratories
- Library with access to scientific and business data banks
- 94-seat auditorium with multimedia projection and sound systems
- Conference and meeting rooms
For more information, please contact us at 450-768-7999.
Other services
Information retrieval service
The Industrial Program’s information specialists are available to support clients with information research. The program provides access to a large collection of print and digital information to meet your needs and more!
Contact the Industrial Program for more information : aafc.programmeindustriel-industrialprogram.aac@canada.ca; 450-768-7999.
Products
Clients of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Food Research and Development Centre's Industrial Program have used the program's equipment and facilities to make a variety of products. The list below contains some of the products created by them.
- cheese
- processed cheese
- yogurt
- ice cream
- butter
- margarine
- milk powder
- cold-pasteurized milk
- condensed milk
- canned food (fruit, vegetables and meat)
- pasteurized prepared food
- powdered and liquid ingredients
- ham
- sausages
- pâtés
- mousses
- jams and preserves
- sauces
- juices
- bacterial cultures
- condiments (sauces, ketchup, mustard)
- pudding
- breakfast cereal
- snacks
- bread
- cakes
- cookies
- crackers
- prepared fresh fruit
Fee schedule
| Description | Hourly cost ($) |
|---|---|
| Access | $43.78 |
| Support: Scientific | $65.68 |
| Support: Professional | $41.70 |
| Support: Technical | $31.27 |
- A cost estimate is submitted for approval before the beginning of a project.
- Access time is calculated based on the actual time the equipment is used and excludes time used for consultation, protocol preparation or data analysis.
- Supplemental charges directly related to a project (such as copies, supplies or equipment cleaning.) are charged at the cost actually incurred by the Centre.
- This fee schedule is subject to change without notice.
Service Standards
Our goal is to achieve our service standards a minimum of 80% of the time under normal circumstances:
- Respond to general inquiries made to our phone number or email address before the end of the next business day
- Acknowledge receipt of your application within 1 business day
- Assess your application and send you an approval or a rejection decision notification within 10 business days
Contact Information
For more information about the Industrial Program, or to access the facilities and equipment, please contact us at:Email: aafc.programmeindustriel-industrialprogram.aac@canada.ca
Telephone: 450-768-7999
TDD/TTY: 613-773-2600
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