Next Generation Manufacturing Canada, the industry-led organization behind the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, will provide $16.8 million for the project, for which crickets will be grown, harvested, frozen and packaged. It’s the largest endeavour NGen has funded to date under the supercluster initiative. (The Logic)

Talking point: London, Ont.-based Aspire Food Group will lead the project, and construction has started. The facility will use technology including automation and robotics to farm crickets, with protein comparable to meat and a low environmental footprint. Collaborators including Telus Agriculture, A&L Canada Laboratories and DarwinAI will showcase their technology at the facility. Last month, as my colleague Catherine reported, NGen spent $148 million of the nearly $230 million it was allocated from the federal budget, and was seeking a further $50 million annually from Ottawa.