Farmers and entrepreneurs being encouraged to join pan-Canadian network of digital agricultural information
A new initiative will provide a total of $5 million to encourage entrepreneurs to join in the potential expansion of a national network of smart farms that aims to help Canadian producers adopt cutting-edge technologies.
“Until now, the digital farm has been out of reach…,” said Laura Kilcrease, board chair of the Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network and chief executive officer of Alberta Innovates.
“Smart agriculture and smart farms connect agricultural equipment manufacturers, food processing, data and analytics and pure technology to bring food security within reach of everyone.”
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The sky’s the limit when it comes to what can be achieved using data and new technologies to improve productivity and sustainability on the farm, said Joy Agnew, project lead for the Pan-Canadian Smart Farm Network and associate vice-president of applied research at Olds College in Alberta.
However, such high-tech approaches to agriculture are often unproven in terms of the wide range of ecosystems and types of farming in Canada, she said. Adoption by producers has been slowed by fears they could be risking their money on what could turn out to be a bad investment, she added.
Besides training the next generation of producers, smart farms involving partners such as post-secondary institutions provide a place to evaluate new technologies under local conditions, said Agnew. They can also be a source of unbiased information that farmers can use, she said.
CAAIN was created in 2019 using federal funding as well as in-kind contributions from Alberta Innovates. The announcement of $5 million was made June 2 at Alberta Innovates’ Inventures conference in Calgary.
CAAIN wants to make it easier for entrepreneurs across the country to help create smart farms, chief executive officer Kerry Wright said during an interview. Such projects must include small- to medium-sized entrepreneurs and collaborations with academic institutions are encouraged, she said.
Although there can be different models, “that is kind of the foundation of what we were thinking.” However, Wright encouraged people to submit their proposals.
“In the beginning, the project registration form is like a two pager, so just tell us what your idea is, and then we’ll engage with them and say, ‘these are the criteria, this is what we’re looking for.’ And honestly, we’re there to help because their success is our success.”
One of CAAIN’s partners is Olds College, whose smart farm is a working livestock and dryland grain operation that acts as a living laboratory for high-tech agriculture. It allows industry, researchers and students to experience a farm of the future in a real-world setting.
It is part of the Pan-Canadian Smart Farm Network, which was launched last year using funding that included $1.1 million from CAAIN. The network also includes the Lakeland College Student-Managed Farm, whose facilities in Vermilion, Alta., include dairy production.
A third member is the Glacier FarmMedia Discovery Farm in Langham, Sask., which is operated by the company that owns The Western Producer. Kilcrease said CAAIN has required its projects to have at least two active partners from both a participation and funding perspective.
“However, over the time we’ve been supporting projects, we’ve heard that it can be difficult for entrepreneurs to assemble their teams and meet the requirements of a competition within a very strict set of guidelines that we had previously required.”
The latest initiative of $5 million aims to make CAAIN better aligned with conditions faced by agricultural entrepreneurs, she said.
“We have to be cognizant we’re dealing with the farm, the farmer, the food processor and everything in between, and there are natural cycles to that, so we’re trying something new.”
As a result, applications can now be submitted as part of a continuous intake process that will last until all the funding is committed, meaning there is no specific deadline, she said. “So, whether it’s the farmer or the processor, we can align with them. This means we’ll accept applications for proposals whenever they come in.”
Although CAAIN has helped projects in Western Canada, it wants to fund smart farms across the country, said Agnew. They do not need to join the PanCanadian Smart Farm Network, which provides a formal framework for smart farms to share their research and collaborate on projects, she said.
However, the funding initiative represents a “tremendous way to build out our network because we’re now going to really find out who out there within Canada is wanting to build that smart farm infrastructure and build out the activities on their smart farm and determine if they are good fit for the smart farm network, so we’re really excited about this.”
Meanwhile, Agnew expected a formal announcement will be made within the next six to eight months about the first expansion site for the network. It is eyeing two potential sites involving post-secondary institutions within Western Canada, she said.
