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News Release

March 27, 2007

Ice Cream, Truffles, Plant Pots Winners at Project SOY

Ice cream and cones, truffles and biodegradable pots for plants — all made from soybeans — topped entries at this year’s Project SOY competition.

The 11th annual event was held Monday. It showcased 12 projects by 35 University of Guelph students who created new uses and marketing strategies for Ontario soybeans. Ideas ranged from soy food products to fashion accessories to biodegradable utensils and packaging materials.

“Today was a great showcase of student creativity,” said Lorne Heslop, a judge representing Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC). “The calibre of projects continues to evolve every year, and it was both exciting and challenging to be a judge.”

The competition has two categories: undergraduate/graduate and diploma and is open to students from U of G’s Guelph, Alfred, Kemptville and Ridgetown campuses. Prizes were $2,500 for first place, $1,000 for second and $500 for third.

In the diploma category, first place was a tie between Sophie Ménard and Sandra Charlebois of Alfred, who developed soy milk-based ice cream and soy-flour cones, and Melissa Sohm and Ryan McLean of Ridgetown, who created a biodegradable pot for plants from soybean straw. Third place went to Jérome Brassard-Duperre and Philippe Mondou of Alfred, who created a soy-based potting soil using soybean straw and oil.

Topping the undergraduate/graduate category was a soy-based alternative to a European truffle delicacy developed by Guelph food science students Kara Gauthier, Robert Godin, Christina Marsigliese, Andrew Roberts and Kevin Van Groningen.

Second place went to Denise Chiu, Christina Cooper, Kelly Flett and Michelle Wong for their healthy soy-enriched alternative to the breakfast bar. Third place was a tie between Jessica Speziale and Sayward Fetterly, who developed fabric from soy stalk for shoes and fashion accessories, and Maria Alejandra Vazquez, Matt Whitman, Julian Sham Ku and Clarence Kwong for their soy flour-based tortilla.

“This competition helps cement relationships between the agri-food industry, government and the University of Guelph,” said president Alastair Summerlee, who hosted the event.

Project SOY is sponsored by Dekalb Brand Seeds; AAFC; the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; and the Ontario Soybean Growers.