Support for innovative local food production

May 24, 2024

Halifax, Nova Scotia – Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Food producers looking to expand their product line or improve their processing can access funding from the 2024-25 Value-Adding Equipment Program.

Value-added refers to the addition of ingredients or processes to produce higher-valued food products or improve the way a food product is made. Funding will be available to agricultural food processing businesses doing value-added processing on-site.

The Value-Adding Equipment Program is designed to help build capacity, competitiveness and growth in the Nova Scotia agriculture sector by providing funding to adopt new and improved processes and technologies.

Now in its second year, the program is funded through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership. Last year, the program helped 38 value-added food producers enhance their production.

Applications are open until June 30 and are available at: Value-adding Equipment Program - Government of Nova Scotia, Canada

Source : Canada.ca

Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?