Summerland, B.C., Canada – BIOTECanada has announced that Okanagan Specialty Fruits (OSF) has been named the winner of this year’s Gold Leaf Award in the category of Early Stage Agriculture. The Gold Leaf Awards are presented by Canada’s national biotechnology industry organization, BIOTECanada, to companies and individuals “that have made significant contributions to the development of Canada’s biotech industry.”
The category of Early Stage Agriculture is for companies who have products in the pre-commercialized stage and are recognized for their potential market impact. According to BIOTECanada, the winner “will have distinguished themselves from their peers with demonstrated technology innovation and achieved milestones.”
In OSF’s case, the award reflects significant progress in bringing nonbrowning Arctic® apples to market in both the U.S. and Canada. OSF’s flagship project underwent public comment periods in both countries in 2012, receiving over 5,000 comments total. These comment periods represent two of the final steps before Arctic apples are commercialized, which will be the culmination of over a decade of development. Once approved, OSF believes these nonbrowning apples will benefit growers, packers, processors, retailer and foodservice by reducing food waste and shrinkage, increasing packout quality and offering exciting new product options to consumers.
The award will be presented at the 2013 BIO International Convention in Chicago on April 23rd at 4pm. OSF President Neal Carter is also scheduled to deliver two presentations at this conference. On April 23rd he will speak at an event titled “Challenges and Opportunities for Small Companies in AgBiotech: Collaborating and Competing with the Majors” and on April 24th he will be delivering a presentation based on a recent TEDx talk he gave in October 2012, “Agricultural Biotechnology: Feeding a Hungry Planet and Saving Lives”.
About Okanagan Specialty Fruits
Okanagan Specialty Fruits Inc. is a dynamic biotechnology company dedicated to developing new commercial tree fruit varieties that are attractive to consumers, and are more profitable for producers and retailers. OSF is operated and largely owned by tree fruit growers based in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. For consumer information, visit www.arcticapples.com; for information about the company and partnership opportunities, visit www.okspecialtyfruits.com.
Source: Okanagan Specialty Fruits
