Corn is one of the top three most important crops in Ontario, both in terms of land use and revenue. It is used to produce animal feed as well as ethanol and other bioproducts. IGPC Ethanol, one of the largest agricultural co-operatives in Ontario, supports farmers and promotes a clean environment by using locally grown corn to produce renewable fuel.

Located in Aylmer, Ontario, IGPC has grown to become one of the largest producers of renewable fuel in Canada. The company has partnered with a research team led by the University of Toronto to create enzyme systems that transform the recovered corn fiber by-product into high-value, sustainable products for use in food and a wide range of bio-based materials. By combining expertise in functional genomics, industrial biotechnology and bioprocess deployment, this project will create new economic opportunities for Ontario’s rural communities.

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FREDsense is a synthetic biology company developing novel tools for real-time water quality analysis. Their lead product – the Field Ready Electrochemical Detector (FRED) – consists of a genetically engineered bacterium tuned to sense heavy metals and other contaminants for the mining sector. Real-time water chemistry analysis is vital to managing utility and mine processes, but traditional laboratory analysis can take days, delaying decisions being made on-site and increasing costs.

The FredSense system is portable, autonomous, and connected, providing users with continuous water quality measurements. FredSense was awarded first prize in Ontario Genomics’ inaugural Canada SynBio Pitch Competition to expand capabilities to additional heavy metals like lead. The tunability and specificity of the sensor technology has significant potential to help Ontario companies in the mining sector reduce costs to meet their regulatory requirements.

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As a result of crude oil extraction, transportation and refining processes, there are thousands of sites in Canada contaminated with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (collectively known as BTEX). This negatively impacts soil and groundwater resources. In Canada and around the world, remediation of contaminated sites is difficult and costly. When possible, affected soil can be dug up and treated or disposed of offsite.

A collaborative project between SiREM, a Guelph-based national leader in environmental remediation, Imperial Oil and the University of Toronto aims to use genomically characterized strains of bacteria that break down BTEX compounds underground without the need to dig up contaminated soil. If successful, solutions developed through this project will significantly accelerate the rate of biodegradation and lead to more efficient and widespread cleanup of contaminated sites at a lower cost.

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Canada’s forestry sector contributes significantly to jobs and GDP, but the industry is being challenged by the digitization of print and global market pressures.

A key opportunity identified by the sector and the Ontario Government’s recently published forestry sector strategy is to develop new and innovative wood-based products. By diversifying production away from low-value commodity products like paper, there is an opportunity to transform pulp and paper mills into biomanufacturing plants that produce high-value materials.

To help accomplish this, Ontario Genomics is supporting Fortress Advanced Bioproducts, a company valorizing pulp and paper mill side streams into xylitol, a low-calorie sweetener. Fortress is partnering with the University of Toronto to optimize a key step in the xylitol production process that reduces operational costs and improves competitiveness in the market.

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Freshwater fish contribute to Canada’s economy both directly and indirectly and are critical for the preservation of freshwater resources and food security. Thriving freshwater fish resources are the lifeblood of many rural, northern, and Indigenous communities and are central to the social and cultural lives of millions of Canadians. Yet over 25% of Canadian freshwater fish stocks are under threat.

The logistical difficulties of monitoring fish in Canada’s 2+ million lakes and countless rivers are compounded by the limitations of conventional sampling methods, which provide only a snapshot. This project will use genomic approaches to develop a Fish Survey Toolkit based on environmental DNA from water samples and a Fish Health Toolkit that will provide quantitative assessments of the health of fish and the stressors they face.

Collectively, these toolkits will enable a complete and accurate assessment of the status of Canada’s freshwater fish resources, save millions of dollars in fish survey costs, and result in additional indirect savings through more effective and directed management actions. Furthermore, and most importantly, the project will ensure the sustainability of Canada’s freshwater fish resources for future generations.

“The GEN-FISH network consists of 24 committed and dedicated scientists who care passionately about the freshwater fishes of Canada and around the world. The GEN-FISH funding will ensure the development of novel, ground-breaking genomic technology to help conserve freshwater fish for generations to come.”

— Dr. Daniel Heath, Professor, University of Windsor

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