CAAIN announces call for livestock projects
The Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network (CAAIN) today launched its Livestock Innovation Program, a $5M initiative designed to foster advances in a sector of vital importance to our economic and social wellbeing.
“Our team is pleased to unveil this opportunity to further support the country's agri-food industries,” said CAAIN CEO, Dr. Cornelia Kreplin. “Of the $49.5M the Government of Canada has committed to our activities, $9.5M is earmarked to fund livestock innovation. While we already have several such projects either on the go or about to launch, including in the areas of beef and pork primary processing, we want to enable and encourage a broader cross-section of livestock-related initiatives. Accordingly, we are inviting applications from qualified innovators, entrepreneurs, and researchers working with livestock ranging from beef to bees, and everything in between.”
CAAIN's mandate from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada is to focus on funding technological responses to the most significant opportunities and challenges facing the nation's agricultural and food producers and processors. That means supporting promising efforts with the potential to provide economic or environmental value. Through the program announced today, CAAIN is doing just that.
“We hope to attract proposals from applicants who are in the agriculture and technology sectors and looking to solve a range of issues,” explained Dr. Kreplin. “We want to cast a wide net and include advances related to matters such as: environmental sustainability; productivity; traceability, transportation, and animal welfare; food safety and quality; and genomics. Those are just a few examples. We live in a time of rapid change, and now, more than ever, it is incumbent on us as a society to encourage the risk-takers and out-ofthe-box thinkers among us.”
When added to the total of approximately $26.4M CAAIN has committed to provide to the 24 successful applicants of its first three competitions, the $5M that will be used to support this livestock innovation program pushes CAAIN'S funding commitments to well over $31M. Details are available online at caain.ca.
“Our government is focused on encouraging innovation, and especially, the creation of agricultural technologies that would allow Canadian agricultural and food producers and processors to have access to the tools they need. With the launch of this competition, we are excited to see the new ideas and solutions Canadian innovators can come up with to improve our livestock industry and grow our economy,” explained François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.
“Canada is at the forefront for livestock innovation and science and this initiative demonstrates Canada's commitment to leading in agriculture advances. This call for proposals will bring forward industry driven solutions to key challenges, while strengthening the agriculture sector and providing opportunities throughout the entire value chain,” added MarieClaude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.
“The board of directors at the Canadian Agri-food Automation and Intelligence Network are pleased to announce this unique funding initiative. Healthy livestock are important to our food production in a clean and green environment. We look forward to receiving project submissions and ultimately the work that will flow from this competition.”
Laura Kilcrease, Chair, CAAIN Board of Directors The Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network is a not-for-profit company launched in July 2019 with funding of $49.5-million from the Government of Canada's Strategic Innovation Fund and assistance from Alberta Innovates in the form of significant in-kind contributions. CAAIN drives collaborative AgTech research and innovation from coast to coast.