Soy beer, anyone?
That could become available if a soybean processing facility opens in Wynyard, Sask., next summer as planned.
A group of Chinese investors is in the province looking at the potential investment and the possibility of moving to Saskatchewan.
A1 Soybean Enterprises Ltd. is an Ontario company that wants to retrofit a former water bottling plant in the community of about 1,900 people to produce soy ingredients used in food, beverages, cosmetics, neutraceuticals, livestock feed and textiles.
The project has an estimated cost of $3 million.
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The company would initially use 1,200-1,500 tonnes of soybeans a year. The plant sits on a 12-acre site with room for expansion.
“After 10 years we’re projecting that the plant will need at least 100,000 tonnes of soybeans,” A1 chief executive officer Simon Hu said through an interpreter.
Hugh Campbell, a commodity marketer, seed grower and plant breeder from Qu’Appelle, Sask., has been developing soybeans in Saskatchewan for several years. He said Saskatchewan could supply A1’s immediate needs.
“We certainly have the ability to provide the plant locally with current seeded acreage.”
About 2,000 acres are in seed production this year and yields are about one tonne per acre.
While A1’s needs are small now, Campbell points to orders he received this week for 10,000 and 200,000 tonnes. He believes A1 could provide a premium market for growers.
Simon Lim, executive director of investment for A1, said the technology to create different products from soybeans has been developed in China. All the products would be made in Canada with ingredients obtained from Wynyard.
Lim said China has excellent regional marketing systems in place and soy products are in demand. The company will target Southeast Asia and China.
The long-term plan also calls for a chain of restaurants called Soy Delicious. A test restaurant is planned for Toronto within a few months.
Lim said investors are excited about the project. Between five and 10 families from China are likely to immigrate through the provincial immigrant nominee program.
“They want to participate and live in Saskatchewan,” he said.
No government money is involved in the project.
“We’re not asking for any government grants or any government loan guarantees,” said Lorne Nystrom, a former NDP MP and now A1’s vice-president in charge of public and government relations. “It’s strictly private investment coming in.”
He noted the Wynyard facility has been vacant for about 10 years and A1 will bring about 70 jobs to the community, plus spin-off jobs like trucking.
Meanwhile, Regina microbrewery owner Bev Robertson is considering the idea of soy beer after attending a meeting with A1, which proposed that Robertson’s Bushwakker Brewing Co. bottle soy beer for distribution in China. He said he hadn’t tasted it but if soy replaces the malting barley used in Canadian beer, the beverage wouldn’t have the flavour people expect.
Some of his concerns include the ability to ship beer to China before the flavour starts to deteriorate, and the renovation and expansion that would be necessary for Bushwakker to supply China’s needs.
“They would need to make us available all over China, even though per capita consumption is not going to be high,” Robertson said.
He added he had asked several dozen people for their opinions about soy beer.
“Usually, with one exception, I got people making a face,” he said.
The one exception was a food scientist who knows that soy is a “universal starting point” for many foods, he added.
