They’ve already added a new mall and the Amazon Fulfilment Centre, now another company is deciding to expand into Rocky View County. 

Enterra Food Corporation, based out of Langley B.C. announced they’re expanding to three new locations with the first to be built in Balzac next year. 

(Photo Courtesy: Enterra Food Corporation)

Manager of Marketing and Operations Victoria Leung explains what Enterra does.

“We market and manufacture sustainable insect ingredients for the feed industry so fish, chicken, pets we’ll make ingredients for. We have been around for about 10 years. We’ve been operational at our first pilot facility in Langley B.C. for four years now and we’re looking to expand.”

While right now, the company is focused on insect feed for animals, Leung says they’re open to the idea of marketing insects for human consumption.

“Over 2 billion people around the world already eat insects as part of their diet so it’s nothing new but it is sort of new to North America so we haven’t quite caught on yet. The insect trend is growing. We hear a lot about cricket protein these days so we think that the market will develop but it’s just going to take a little more time.”

The other locations that Enterra will set up are in the Metro Vancouver area and Ohio. Leung says there was one big reason they decided to come to Balzac.

“We’re able to use pre-consumer food waste to feed our insects. Really what they’re doing is upcycling the nutrients from the waste stream and turn them into new nutrients that we can then feed to animals. There was readily available pre-consumer food waste around that Balzac area, enough to support a whole new facility there.”

Leung says that they were also able to move into a pre-existing building in Balzac. Right now there’s no word to when exactly Enterra will open in the area.

Regardless, Leung says they’re happy to soon be in Rocky View and contribute to the local economy.

“It feels fantastic. We believe that insects are the future of food and feed and we’re really happy to be a part of the Balzac business community and really bringing jobs to that local area.”

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