Invest Medicine Hat looking ahead to 2017

“As farmers, we see that as being a really nice opportunity to expand acres and southern Alberta is the best location to grow hemp seed,” he said.

Sookocheff has been working behind the scenes, helping Feildberg with the plant.

“It’s a unique opportunity for Medicine Hat because it ties in directly with commodities or products that we have available locally,” he said.

“The demand for that hemp nut, called the hemp heart, is huge and growing,” said Fieldburg.

But investment doesn’t stop there.

Sookocheff hopes the plant leads more entrepreneurs to more opportunities, one being hemp milk.

“We’re looking to speak with entrepreneurs from across the country, and locally of course as well. Connect them to potential investors and hopefully some business comes out of it,” he said.

That’s not the only business venture Invest Medicine Hat hopes business owners take on.

They believe food products, like salsa and bone broth, would also do well here.

“Bone broth is a really unique opportunity right now and the reason why we believe that Medicine Hat is a prime location to manufacture bone broth on a commercial scale is because we have ready access to the actual bones,” Sookocheff said.

He believes it’s about turning what would otherwise be considered a waste product and making it into a profit.

For a product like bone broth, Sookocheff already has the products available one would need.

“To be quite honest, it’s not one of those ones that’s got a bunch of legs on it yet,” he said. “But we’re hoping that it will. It’s a good opportunity for the right person.”

by Ashley Wiebe

Invest Medicine Hat looking ahead to 2017

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