Ontario ag tech companies continue to grow

The number of agriculture and food startup companies continues to grow in Ontario, judging from new and established technology companies at the AgTech Breakfast at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show.

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Companies pitched their products during the event to a crowd of people that included farmers, private agriculture venture capital funds and public investors, and the organizations that support the agriculture technology ecosystem.

Here’s are some examples of the companies featured at the event or that made pitches.

The Rural Agri Innovation Network (RAIN) in Sault Ste. Marie is working with a group of partners including AgriTech North, based in Dryden, and College Boreal to work to commercialize greenhouse strawberry production in the north.

Due to the colder climate than in southern Ontario, traditional greenhouses won’t work well in the north, says David Thompson of RAIN.

The group is looking at ETFE a multi-layer covering that insulates the growing area, but still lets through light and isn’t much used in Canada. The structure is also pressurized.

MetaCycler BioInnovations is using dairy processing waste to create decomposable plastic to replace food service plastics that take a long time to decompose and become hazards in the environment.

The company was formed by a group from the University of Waterloo in 2022 and uses polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) to make their biodegradable plastics.

MetaCycler was at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show looking to connect with dairy producers and processors to find more waste dairy for them to use.

UMA Systems takes unused animal hides and makes them into a high protein feed for aquaculture and livestock.

The company originated in Europe and has recently expanded into Canada.

Seva Lisouski, CEO of UMA Systems told the AgTech Breakfast that wasted hides and other wastes from leather making end up in dumps. The company distills the hides down to a high protein meal.

Vetson continues to grow, now working with about 300 farms across Canada.

The veterinary telemedicine company is now working with a national distributor of veterinary supplies to help grow its reach, and is looking for more investment.

Colin Yates, CEO and co-founder of the company, says that the model of veterinary clinics that work in large animals is changing, with new technology making some functions of those clinics, like pregnancy checking, obsolete.

That means they need to look at new economic model, says Yates, including considering veterinary telemedicine.

Grain Discovery, a Picton, Ont. company that secures data sharing within the grain value chain. It can create a digital passport with information, such as agronomic details, that follows the grain through the value chain.

The system is sold to grain dealers who can use to track bids, contracts and ticket settlements.

There are about 13,000 users on the platform and about 40 per cent of Ontario soybeans are traced through the program, says Logan Kennelly of Grain Trade.