Canada, B.C. support innovation on the farm

Press Release

Aug. 14, 2020

VICTORIA – B.C. companies continue to bring innovation to the farm, using technology to develop new products and processes that will support food production and food security in British Columbia.

The governments of Canada and B.C. are supporting 14 new projects with more than $2.4 million through the Canada-British Columbia Agri-Innovation Program to help create opportunities in the province’s agricultural and technology industries.

Surrey-based BC Hot House Foods is widely known for its greenhouse-grown cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes. With funding of over $380,000, BC Hot House is working to develop a feasible method to cultivate greenhouse strawberries commercially in B.C. for people to enjoy year-round. The company is working with experts from Europe who have had success in growing soft fruit in protected environments.

Ecoation Innovative Solutions in North Vancouver is receiving $500,000 to develop and test an automated pesticide-free crop treatment system that will immediately address pests in greenhouse vegetables, using a crop monitoring robot the company invented. The technology involves use of biological control agents and UV-based disinfection. The location-based intelligence is gathered and provided to growers through a web application that was developed by Ecoation. The technology’s treatment system pilot in vegetable greenhouses will be the first time it is used in Canada.

Vancouver-based Forest Foods Ltd. is supporting several Indigenous communities in B.C. that are engaged in the production of wild forest mushrooms and plant-based foods. The company is receiving nearly $15,000 to develop two facility design plans to help with packaging and processing. The first design is for a mobile facility that will focus on cleaning and packaging forest mushrooms and plant-based forest foods. The second is for a fixed facility that will incorporate processing capacities for the commercialization of a variety of products. Both designs will be presented to the Indigenous communities with the intent of developing the facilities to support the expansion of their business operations and deliver Indigenous-branded forest mushrooms and plant-based foods to market, both domestically and internationally.

Projects under the Canada-British Columbia Agri-Innovation Program have received more than $7.3 million in funding from the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. The partnership is a five-year federal-provincial-territorial agreement that includes $2 billion in cost-shared strategic initiatives delivered by the provinces and territories, and $1 billion for federal programs and services through March 2023.

Quotes:

Marie-Claude Bibeau, federal Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food –

“B.C. companies are really stepping up to the plate with innovative technologies and solutions to the various challenges faced by our agricultural sector. They are finding ways to grow more of the top quality food we love, more sustainably and more efficiently. With the close co-operation of my counterpart, Minister Popham, we will always get behind these forward-looking projects that will help achieve a bright future for the agriculture sector in British Columbia.”

Lana Popham, B.C.’s Minister of Agriculture –

“Bringing innovation into the agriculture industry is taking the sector to new levels and creating more opportunities in communities around the province. Technology can transform and improve the way farmers and processors do their daily work, while keeping their products the way consumers enjoy them. This is just one of the many ways B.C. companies are evolving to stay competitive.”

Saber Miresmailli, founder and CEO, Ecoation Innovative Solutions –

“The Canada-BC Agri-Innovation Program provides unique opportunities to Canadian agriculture companies to showcase Canadian-made solutions to the world and establish Canada/B.C. as a global leader and knowledge epicentre on all topics related to the future of food. This program allows companies like Ecoation to directly engage industry partners and demonstrate solutions that meet the need of the farming industry. Demonstrating technology under real-world conditions is critical for market adoption and scaling in domestic and international markets. The program de-risks new technology adoption and provides a unique opportunity for collaboration between farms and technology providers.”

Learn More:

For information about additional projects that have received funding, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/21433

For more information about the Canada-BC Agri-Innovation Program, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/agriculture-seafood/programs/canada-bc-agri-innovation

For more information on how to apply to the Canada-BC Agri-Innovation Program, visit:
www.iafbc.ca/funding-opportunities/innovation/

For more information on the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, visit:
www.agr.gc.ca/eng/about-us/key-departmental-initiatives/canadian-agricultural-partnership/?id=1461767369849

A backgrounder follows.

Contacts:

Jill Hunt
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Agriculture
778 676-4460

Jean-Sébastien Comeau
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
jean-sebastien.comeau@canada.ca
343 549-2326

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Media Relations
613 773-7972
1 866 345-7972
aafc.mediarelations-relationsmedias.aac@canada.ca
Follow on Twitter: @AAFC_Canada
Like on Facebook: CanadianAgriculture

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BACKGROUNDER

Support for B.C. businesses

The following 14 projects received more than $2.4 million in support from the Canadian Agricultural Partnership under the Canada-BC Agri-Innovation Program. This brings the total funding to over $7.3 million since the program began in April 2018.

Advanced Intelligent Systems:

• $469,000 to prototype and test an autonomous pruning robot configured to navigate in a greenhouse and load, trim and unload potted plants

AgriForest Bio-Technologies Ltd.:

• $72,000 to make locally certified, virus-free planting materials of the best performing grape varieties in commercial-sized quantities

BC Hot House Foods:

• $383,100 to develop a method to grow greenhouse strawberries commercially in B.C.

BC Turkey Growers Association:

• $18,076 to explore a potential technology to help reduce the effects poultry diseases have on the local turkey production system

Confirmed Automation Systems:

• $146,090 to develop and test a prototype that mechanically helps mushroom pickers by automatically trimming stems and gently filling boxes to the correct target packing weights

Delta Farmland & Wildlife Trust:

• $161,050 to evaluate farm management practices on commercial blueberry fields to improve pollination services from native pollinators and pest control from insects

Dicklands Farms FLP:

• $345,000 to install and demonstrate equipment that converts liquid manure and left-over material into clean water and a concentrated nutrient-rich liquid

Ecoation Innovative Solutions:

• $500,000 to develop and test an automated pest and disease treatment that can address the issues detected by a monitoring robot using biological control agents and UV-based disinfection

Forest Foods Ltd.:

• $14,749 to develop two processing facility designs to use in Indigenous communities in B.C. currently engaged in the production of forest mushrooms and plant-based foods

Kaslo Sourdough:

• $46,625 to help develop fermented spaghetti and other long noodles, including testing, prototyping and production

Kwantlen Polytechnic University:

• $20,000 to develop and verify a DNA profiling strategy for hydrangeas to accurately identify varieties to ensure consistency and for the development and registration of new varieties

Tantalus Vineyards:

• $60,020 to explore how the use of no-till planted cover crops in an Okanagan Valley vineyard affects the soil carbon content, overall soil chemistry, fruit and vine chemistry, and soil microbiology and how the use of cover crops can replace the need for synthetic fertilizer in vineyard and orchard systems

University of British Columbia:

• $120,000 to use hemp waste to produce nanocellulose, a light solid substance obtained from plant matter, and develop new hemp nanocellulose-based bioplastic materials for food packaging

Valid Manufacturing LTD.:

• $125,000 to complete the third stage of its project, which includes the implementation and demonstration of more features of the prototype dewatering centrifuge designed to support the business and environmental needs of the B.C. dairy industry

Contacts:

Jill Hunt
Government Communications and Public Engagement
Ministry of Agriculture
778 676-4460

Jean-Sébastien Comeau
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
jean-sebastien.comeau@canada.ca
343 549-2326

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Media Relations
613 773-7972
1 866 345-7972
aafc.mediarelations-relationsmedias.aac@canada.ca
Follow on Twitter: @AAFC_Canada
Like on Facebook: CanadianAgriculture

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