INCA Renewable Technologies (Canada), leader in natural fiber composites announced that it has been approved for a $202,534 grant from Alberta Innovates Agri-food and Bioindustrial Innovation Program to complete development of the Company’s novel hemp-based bio-composites and conduct line trials at Toyota and automotive Tier 1 suppliers.  The funding is part of the Government of Alberta’s commitment to expand support of agricultural products for food as well as feedstock for industry.

According to David Saltman, Chairman and CEO of INCA Renewtech, “This funding from Alberta Innovates will enable us to refine hemp fiber at the Innotech Alberta laboratory, to produce several thousand pounds of INCA BioPlastics, and then conduct full scale line trials of our products with Toyota and a number of other automotive customers.    By replacing glass reinforced plastics with natural fiber composites we will enable our industrial partners to produce stronger and lighter products.  Our customers will also be able to reduce costs by recycling trim waste and produce recyclable end products.  That means reducing landfill waste for communities and sequestering carbon forever.”

INCA will be the first to vertically integrate composites manufacturing in North America.  Its proposed operation in Vegreville, AB will purchase hemp biomass from farmers growing the cultivar for plant-based protein, refine this renewable resource, and produce advanced composites for the automotive and other industries.  This secondary income for farmers and will help make hemp one of the most profitable cash crops in the Canadian Prairie and expand utilization of the hemp cultivar.  INCA will also create high paying manufacturing jobs and valuable export opportunities for the province.

According to Scott Oppliger, Principal Engineer at Toyota Motor Manufacturing and Engineering, “The shift towards environmentally friendly materials is crucial in our efforts to reduce our carbon footprints and mitigate climate change.  INCA’s injection and extrusion grade pellets not only promise enhanced physical properties in finished products but also significantly improve CO2 equivalent emissions.”