BANFF, Alta. — More than $3 billion in federal money will be available this spring to support agriculture projects over the next five years.
The money is coming through three Growing Forward 2 programs and will be available April 1, 2013, said agriculture minister Gerry Ritz at the Alberta Barley Commission annual meeting in Banff on Dec. 7.
“That investment represents an increase of 50 percent in our joint investments with the provinces and territories from the last Growing Forward suite,” he said.
Money will pay for research and marketing programs and encourages industry and scientists from universities as well as government to collaborate.
The grain and livestock sectors are encouraged to identify work they want to see completed to make them more sustainable or competitive with new or traditional products.
“For years we have had a tremendous amount of research going on but it didn’t necessarily give industry what they thought they needed,” Ritz told reporters.
The programs are:
•The AgriInnovation program focuses on investments to develop and commercialize new products and technologies.
- •The AgriMarketing program will help industry to adopt and improve food safety and traceability systems. It will also support industry in maintaining and gaining new markets for their products through branding and promotional activities.
The AgriCompetitiveness program will target investments to help strengthen the agriculture and agri-food industry’s ability to adapt and be profitable in domestic and global markets.
