Agri-Opportunities Program

The Agri-Opportunities Program provides funds to accelerate the commercialization of new agricultural products, processes or services. Funding is provided for projects that can be expected to increase market opportunities for the Canadian agricultural industry across the value chain and generate demand for primary agricultural products.

Eligibility Criteria

• Aboriginal groups;
• academic institutions;
• Canadian agri-businesses;
• co-operatives;
• corporations;
• foreign companies (that have a Canadian subsidiary);
• individuals;
• non-governmental organizations;
• non-profit entities*; and
• producers.

Eligible Activities

Eligible projects are those that lead to the commercialization of new agricultural products and processes, and related services.

To be eligible for funding, projects must:

• be focused on agri-food, agriculture and bioproducts that are not commercially produced or available in Canada;
• be ready to commercialize, meaning a prototype has been developed, a market has been defined, a business plan has been written and intellectual property issues have been finalized; and
• be conducted in Canada and benefit the Canadian agricultural industry.

Eligible activities can include:

• finalizing commercial development of a new product or process or a new service;
• introducing a new product to the market, and validating the market potential or assessing customer satisfaction for the product or service;
• introducing new technology likely to lead to improved efficiency and competitiveness;
• establishing, expanding and modernizing agriculture or agri-product facilities to commercialize new products or processes for new markets; and
• supporting marketing, human resource development, productivity improvement or quality improvement directly related to the commercialization of new agriculture, food and bioproduct opportunities.

Summary

• The Agri-Opportunities Program provides a maximum contribution of $10 million per project and per recipient regardless of the number of projects, over the life of the program.
• The program ends on March 31, 2011. Funding provided to for-profit organizations will be in the form of repayable contributions.
• Funding provided to not-for-profit organizations will normally be non-repayable.

*Note: "non-profit" also known as nonprofit organizations, non profit organizations, not-for-profit organizations, voluntary organizations and volunteer organizations.

Manitoba Contact(s):
See National Contact.

National Contact(s):
Agri-Opportunities Program
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Building 57, CEF
960 Carling Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario  K1A 0C6
Fax: 1-866-309-4255
E-mail: agri-opps@agr.gc.ca
Web site: http://www.agr.gc.ca/index_e.phtml