Ontario Launches Agri-food Innovation Initiative
June 13, 2019Cornwall Ontario – Ontario’s government is helping to grow the province’s agri-food and agri-products sectors by launching the Place to Grow: Agri-food Innovation Initiative – a program which will help drive innovation, reduce red tape, and address industry priorities.
Under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, this initiative will provide new cost-share funding opportunities to agriculture and food value-chain partners, while encouraging greater collaboration to identify opportunities and address challenges in the sector.
The new Place to Grow program will allow organizations to apply for projects in key priority areas, including:
- Labour supply and training challenges, which is a new category added for this program
- Economic development in the agri-food and agri-products sectors
- Environmental stewardship to enhance water quality and soil health
- Protection and assurance to reinforce the foundation for public trust in the sector through improved assurance systems in food safety and plant and animal health
In addition, there is a new category for bold, high-impact projects that are expected to create a sector-wide benefit.
“Ontario’s agri-food sector is a huge employer in this province and a source of a wide array of food products enjoyed all over the globe. This enhanced programming will open doors for our agri-food businesses and give them more opportunities to help them grow, innovate and find greater success,” said Ernie Hardeman, Ontario’s Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.
The first application intake for the Place to Grow: Agri-food Innovation Initiative will open on Aug. 15, 2019 and remain open through Sept. 27, 2019. The second intake will open on Jan. 6, 2020. The program will include planned, predictable future intakes each year of the Canadian Agricultural Partnership.
The Canadian Agricultural Partnership (the Partnership) is a five-year, $3 billion commitment by Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial governments that supports Canada’s agri-food and agri-products sectors. To date, both the federal and provincial governments have committed cost-share support to more than 1,150 projects through the Partnership to help eligible farmers, processors, businesses and sector organizations innovate and grow.
Administration of the cost-share funding under the Partnership to sector-level organizations is transitioning from the Agricultural Adaptation Council to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). OMAFRA also delivers cost-share programming under the Partnership to food processors and other businesses (animal health, commercialization and primary agri-food business projects).
Who can Apply
Farmers, processors, organizations, other businesses and collaborations, Indigenous and northern communities, and manufacturers of productivity enhancing equipment for producers and processors.
When to Apply
- Full program details on the Place to Grow: Agri-food Innovation Initiative will be available in August 2019.
- The first application intake for the Place to Grow: Agri-food Innovation Initiative will open on Aug. 15, 2019 and remain open through Sept. 27, 2019. The second Place to Grow intake is to take open on Jan. 6, 2020 and remain open through Jan. 27, 2020.
- The program will include planned, predictable future intakes each year during the life of the Partnership. Intakes will also take place at these times: Sept. 8-29, 2020; Jan. 4-25, 2021; and Sept. 7-27, 2021.
Visit ontario.ca/AgPartnership for program details, guidebooks, application details and intake dates.
Application Details
Application details, intake dates, program details and guidebooks for sector organizations and collaborations are available from the Agricultural Adaptation Council at: adaptcouncil.org/program/cap.