Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole to establish a new agrifood innovation and entrepreneurship centre

Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole (Canada), with support from the City of Saint-Hyacinthe and the MRC des Maskoutains, has presented the main components of its proposed Agrifood Innovation and Entrepreneurship Centre, to be established within the technology park. 

Designed to accelerate the commercialisation of new innovations and support the emergence of technology-driven agrifood companies, the facility will occupy spaces that Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole plans to acquire, as a co-owner, within the technology park’s new multifunctional complex. 

Covering 1,394 square metres, the Agrifood Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center will offer spaces to foster collaboration among researchers, entrepreneurs, and industrial and financial partners. It will include co-creation and networking areas, shared laboratories accessible to user companies, and incubation spaces for start-ups seeking longer-term occupancy. 

The Centre is expected to open in March 2028. Client companies will benefit from a full range of business and innovation-support services, reinforced through strategic partnerships to provide support across all stages of technological maturity. 

The infrastructure and services are intended to complement and strengthen the existing regional business support ecosystem. They will facilitate access to specialised services, expertise, and equipment available within the Cité de l’innovation agroalimentaire through major institutions, and eventually to resources offered elsewhere in Québec. A unified digital platform will pool these scientific and technological tools for the benefit of innovative companies active in animal health or food processing. 

“Led by Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole, this project was developed following a process that consulted nearly one hundred companies to accurately identify their innovation-related needs. It was also designed with long-term sustainability in mind, aiming to complement the infrastructure and expertise already present within our institutions. The goal is to create synergies, enhance utilisation flows, and increase the collective value of the ecosystem,” stated Dr Sylvain Fournaise, board member of Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole and chair of the Agrifood Innovation Partners Council. 

The Centre's activities will be structured around the “One Health” approach, highlighting the interdependence between animal, environmental, and human health, particularly through healthy nutrition. This vision requires concrete mechanisms for collaborative innovation capable of transforming the ways we produce, consume, and manage food resources, mechanisms that the new Centre will help establish.