An AgTech Breakfast was held Wednesday morning at Ag in Motion to profile a number of startup companies, and what they can provide for farmers.

A start-up company called Pathoscan can test for crop disease in the field, providing immediate immediate answers. This is unlike labs where getting results takes days. In a similar vain, Picketa Systems can scan plant tissue and provide immediate results for macro, as well as micro nutrients; they started with potatoes in New Brunswick, then did corn, and are now calibrating for tissue analysis in canola.

Prairie Clean Energy is constructing a facility in Regina to process flax straw into pellets for bio energy, as well as other high value products. Area producers will have a market for flax straw and they can also invest in the company — an investment approved for a 45 per cent tax credit.

Meanwhile, Phytokana Ingredients is building a protein fractionation facility for faba beans in Strathmore, Alberta and is buying faba beans for the facility.

These AgTech start-ups and others are in the CIBC AgTech Alley tent at Ag in Motion.

Author’s note: The second last paragraph previously mentioned Faba Canada is building a protein fractionation facility. It has since been corrected to Phytokana Ingredients.