From CRIBIQ Grant to Innovation: Our $972K R&D Journey

The number that changed the scope of the work

$972,000.

That is the value of the R&D project approved through CRIBIQ and NSERC for Solpak's research into sustainable packaging alternatives.

I have been proud of many things we have built at Solpak. This project belongs in a different category. Not because of the dollar amount. Because of what it required us to become.

How the project came together

Research grants do not fall from the sky. You earn them by doing the preliminary work, building the research case, and demonstrating that you can actually execute.

CRIBIQ connects industry partners with research expertise in bioproducts and industrial materials. NSERC is the federal natural sciences research council. Getting both onside for a project of this scale requires a proposal that is scientifically rigorous, economically defensible, and practically relevant.

We spent months on that proposal.

What we are actually building

The packaging industry has a PFAS problem. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been widely used in food-grade packaging for their resistance to grease and moisture. The evidence on their toxicity and environmental persistence is no longer deniable.

The challenge is finding alternatives that match performance. Sealable pulp packaging that meets the requirements of food processing clients without PFAS is hard to engineer. That is the problem we are working on.

We are not doing this because it is fashionable. We are doing it because the market will require it, and we would rather be the company that solved the problem than the company that adapted to someone else's solution.

What the journey has taught us

R&D at this scale tests every system in a company. Project management, documentation, team coordination, client communication.

It has made Solpak a more rigorous operation. That was not the goal of the project. But it has been one of the most valuable outcomes.

Real innovation does not just produce a product. It builds the company capable of producing it.