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Company Background
Sun Prime Extracts Ltd. (Sun Prime) was incorporated in Manitoba in 2005 to investigate alfalfa fractionation for the functional food and nutraceutical markets. Owned and operated by Garry Halwas, Sun Prime is a separate division of Sunridge Forage Ltd. (Sunridge). Garry Halwas also owns Sunnyside Farms Ltd., a grain and horse operation that supplies the hay land for Sunridge Forage.
Sunridge is a timothy hay processing plant located in Russell, Manitoba. Sunridge was established in 1997 and is currently the major Manitoba supplier of compressed timothy hay for export. Sunridge markets the timothy to Asian markets – Toyota, Kanematsu, Nichemen and Arts Trading -- through NAFTAC Commodities, based in Lethbridge, Alberta. Sunridge is a family owned and operated business owned 60% by Garry and 20% each by sons Mark and Chris. Sunridge prides itself on being a leader in the hay industry, applying innovation and new technology to increase efficiency and continually improve products to meet the growing demands of the marketplace.
In November 2004, Sunridge Forage Ltd. became one of the first hay facilities to become certified under the Canadian Hay Certification Program (CHCP). This program, regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), is designed to ensure baled hay for export meets all requirements of the importing country.
Garry Halwas began experimenting in 2005, extracting and analyzing juice from a variety of crops for nutritional content. The alfalfa juice caught the attention of Dr. Nancy Ames at the Cereal Research Center (CRC) located at the University of Manitoba. Analysis indicated concentrations of lutein in both the juice and the pulp comparable to the high lutein extractions from marigolds and spinach. Further experiments at the Food Development Center (FDC) in Portage involved drying the product to a powder to increase the versatility of applications and stability. The resulting product was a concentrated, vibrant green, fine textured alfalfa powder with a super-concentrated dense, fibrous, dark green alfalfa paste by-product.
All research and feedback from scientists and health professionals to date has indicated that this lutein-rich powder is a new and innovative health product worth pursuing. An initial market assessment was conducted by Kelwin Management Consulting in early 2006 followed by a test launch of the product at the Health Ingredients tradeshow in Japan (HI JAPAN) in the fall of 2006. Based on the positive results, Sun Prime constructed a mobile press and extraction unit (MPEU) in August 2007. The mobile unit enables immediate juicing of the cut alfalfa to maintain peak nutritional profile.
Contact Sunprime
Sunprime Contact Info
Sun Prime Extracts Ltd.
P.O. Box 807
Russell, MB Canada
R0J 1W0
Phone: (204) 821-5716
Phone: (204) 773-2305
Fax: (204) 773-2874
Email: ghalwas@sunprime.ca
(Garry Halwas)