The funding supports innovative projects across the food value chain, including supply chain digitization, alternative proteins, and sustainable packaging
GUELPH, ON, — The Canadian Food Innovation Network (CFIN) is investing $2,545,030 into eight projects, valued at over $5M through the organization’s Food Innovation Challenge and Innovation Booster Programs.
The Food Innovation Challenge funding recipients are:
Theory Mesh (Winnipeg, MB): Creating A More Sustainable Beef and Dairy Supply Chain Through Controlled Environment Agriculture and Digitization
Funding: $1,287,025.00
TheoryMesh is partnering with CubicFarm Systems Corp. and EcoDairy to create a traceable and transparent supply chain for beef and dairy. By connecting all the players and data points throughout the supply chain, consumers will be able to pull up sustainability data on grocery store products using a QR code and ensure that the provenance of their food is verifiable at point of sale.
Blockchain will be used to capture verifiable data at all points within the supply chain and machine learning will be used to optimize the supply chain for sustainability and ensure the quality and safety of consumer products.
Funding provided by
“Our family is dedicated to protecting the prairie. We strive to work smarter on our ranch by applying our business and consulting expertise and focusing on ranch innovation and sustainability. With climate change, technology advances and decreasing natural resources, we know we must operate our ranch differently. With the HydroGreen system, we can now produce better, faster, and stronger for ourselves and the planet.”
“My family is originally from Holland, I grew up on a dairy farm, and I’ve been in the industry all my life. Talking with my parent’s friends who are immersed in the veggie industry, they recommended Iinvestigateoptions to produce lettuce in a sustainable way. I looked into the greenhouse and indoor vertical warehouse systems, but they could not meet my needs. I needed to minimize my risk, space and lower my labor costs.
“After a significant drought and taking over my family ranch, I was looking for a more cost-effective way to produce our fodder. I knew there were better producer options out there, but most of the systems had too much manual labour and seed obligations that were not cost-effective. The HydroGreen system’s value proposition was compelling. The fodder’s nutritive value is exceptional for our herd and the system is time-efficient. I run one piece of machinery for 35 mins a day when in the past, it would have taken me a few hours a day and three machines using traditional equipment. In our neck of the woods, one six-rack HydroGreen system is the equivalent to 320 acres of South Dakota prairie sitting inside a 60 x 40 building. It is essentially drought resistant ‘Land on a Stand’ which produces grass every day, in any weather, in less than an hour.”