Future Fields
Location: Edmonton, Alberta VC Investor: Builders VC Company URL: futurefields.io
Strategic Importance: Advanced education, biotech
Proteins are molecules that play vital roles within living organisms. Today, scientists are creating proteins in the lab to develop new medicines, food innovations, agricultural applications, medicines and pharmaceuticals, industrial biotech and much more.
Future Fields, an Edmonton biotech/biomanufacturing company, has devised a novel way to manufacture molecules that are difficult to produce using traditional technologies. Using the common fruit fly!
It’s an innovative approach that allows Future Fields to mass-produce a host of high-value proteins better, faster, cheaper, and more sustainably than anyone else.
Successful Trials
with a global food manufacturer
30 Alberta-Based Employees
“Alberta is an untapped talent pool for the types of hires we need. The UofA is a research powerhouse, particularly in the life sciences.”
Creating a Buzz
Future Fields was founded by two post-graduate students from the University of Alberta: Matt and Jalene Anderson-Baron.
Their company operates as a contract manufacturer, working with high-profile clients across multiple industries to supply their bespoke molecules.
As demand has grown, Future Fields has built a state-of-the-art biomanufacturing facility in Edmonton, firmly planting its roots in the province for the foreseeable future.
They have 30 employees, 20 of whom are graduates of (or have ties to) the University of Alberta.
Jalene, Future Fields’ COO, says there are tremendous advantages to operating in Alberta, which can be summarized as Talent, Community, and Funding.
“Alberta is an untapped talent pool for the types of hires we need. The UofA is a research powerhouse, particularly in the life sciences. It produces so many skilled graduates in relevant fields like biochemistry, genetics, and engineering. And we’ve been able to capture so much of this great talent.”
The Role of Capital
CEO Matt credits Alberta Enterprise Corporation (AEC) for helping to spearhead investment in Alberta’s startup community and making it a great place to build a company. He adds that working with Mark Blackwell and the Venture Capital team at Builders has been fantastic.
“They’ve been able to make intros to other investors during our fundraising process and have helped us get in front of key clients and strategic partners.”
Just as proteins are valuable ingredients in biotech, access to Venture Capital funds and expertise is a central building block for technology start-ups. It’s helped Future Fields reach a point where they’re now conducting successful trials with a global food manufacturer
