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Feeding the North with Vertical Aquaponics
The Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency ( CanNor ) and Gray Dragon Investment Corporation ( GDI ) have each contributed $ 75,000 to an ag tech project to help feed the North . With the funds North Star Agriculture
Inc ., a subsidiary of GDI , is developing the first indoor , vertical aquaponics farm in the Yukon . The first of its kind north of 60 , the vertical farm will annually produce 200 tonnes of fish and over 200,000 kg of produce . Development of a northern aquaponics farm will create local employment while decreasing reliance on food transported from southern regions . “ This project has great potential to make a real difference in providing Northerners with access to fresh , local produce , while creating jobs and diversifying the Yukon economy ,” says Navdeep Bains , Minister of Innovation , Science , and Economic Development , and Minister responsible for the CanNor .
- newswire . ca
Olds College Receives $ 16M Personal Donation
Earlier this year , Olds College received a multimillion donation from David P . Werklund and his partner , Susan Norman , to build the Werklund Agriculture Institute ( WAI ), a centre that will specialize in smart agriculture . The WAI will feature four key components : a centre that will act as a hub for companies , entrepreneurs , investors , and students to access Olds College land and facilities for development , scale up , and demonstration of smart agriculture ; a fully endowed industry leader to serve as a connector and advisor on smart agriculture technology , innovation , and business ; a year-long producer mentorship program to expose students to smart agriculture practices ; and a vertically integrated “ gate to plate ” agriculture and food learning enterprise where students engage in business decision making and management . The tiered donation — which begins with $ 2 million in cash , followed by a matching component where Werklund will provide one dollar for every three raised , up to $ 4 million , and a final $ 10 million estate gift — will have a total cumulative impact of $ 32 million .
- newswire . ca
FarmLead App Growing Strong
In 2014 , pro hockey player-turned-entrepreneur Brennan Turner and business partner Alain Goubau created FarmLead , an app that allows buyers and sellers of crops to directly negotiate their own deals . Earlier this year , the Ottawa-based company received a USD $ 6.5 million infusion of venture capital from Monsanto Growth Ventures , Avrio Ventures , MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund , and Serra Ventures . Turner says much of the capital will go toward setting up and staffing a new sales office in Chicago . “ We ’ re already there ,” he says of the lucrative American market . “ We just haven ’ t really been aggressively pursuing it in terms of dollars spent .” So far , more than 4,000 farmers have joined the platform , using it to trade 1.4 million tonnes of grain . The number of transactions has been growing by about 10 per cent a month , though Turner says he ’ d like to see double over the next year . The average transaction is worth about $ 70,000 , and the firm is on track for six-figure revenues in 2017 .
- obj . ca
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