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An award-winning Quebec collaboration to valorize marine co-products and stimulate biotechnology innovation
At ADRIQ's 2025 Gala, the Industrial Research Sectoral Groupings (RSRI) Award highlights the power of collaborations between research institutions and businesses. This award recognizes innovative projects conducted in partnership that have led to new products, processes, or technologies, while generating tangible benefits for participating companies. It also underscores the development of skills and the training of highly qualified personnel.
This year, CRIBIQ chose to honor the project "Development and Commercialization of a New Immunofunctional Molecule – CH" in the RSRI category.
This project stands out for its collaborative research, innovation, and significant benefits for industry and society.
Innovation Born from the Sea
This unique project is the result of a collaboration between the E. Gagnon et Fils crab processing plant in Gaspésie, the biotechnology firm Immune Biosolutions based in Sherbrooke, as well as Merinov and TransBIOTech. Together, they have valorized a marine co-product with high potential: CH, a native biomolecule derived from snow crab (Chionoecetes opilio) residues.
Extensive research has demonstrated that CH possesses remarkable immunomodulatory properties, equivalent to, or even superior to, those of a biomolecule already used as an adjuvant, but which is very costly and difficult to obtain sustainably. In contrast, CH is abundant and easy to extract, thus offering an effective, sustainable, and economical alternative.
A Circular and Sustainable Approach
The project aligns with a circular economy approach, valorizing residual materials from fisheries and marine processing. By utilizing these co-products as raw material, the partners reduce the waste of marine resources while maximizing their value. The introduction of optimized physicochemical processes enables more efficient extraction of bioactive compounds, while reducing the consumption of water, energy, and solvents at an industrial scale.
Tangible and Promising Benefits
Beyond technological innovation, this project has led to the development of a natural ingredient with immunofunctional effects, capable of replacing certain chemical or pharmaceutical additives in various products. The tangible benefits are numerous:
- Creation of a new company;
- Filing of two patents;
- Market launch of a promising solution.
An Integrated Quebec Sector
This unprecedented collaboration gives rise to the first integrated and entirely Quebec-based sector for the valorization of marine co-products, combining food processing and biotechnologies. It targets high value-added markets, benefiting the local economy and the environment.
Yvan Boutin, an instructor at Cégep de Lévis and a cellular biology researcher at TransBIOTech, was present at the gala to receive an honorary plaque on behalf of his team. This RSRI award is a tribute to collaborative innovation, applied research, and the capacity of Quebec stakeholders to transform an overlooked co-product into a future technological solution.
