Sask. agriculture tech companies receive boost from provincial government
Innovation Saskatchewan is investing $170,000 in two local research and development technologies.
The grants are coming through the Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation Fund (SAIF) and Agtech Growth Fund (AGF).
"Saskatchewan companies are leaders in innovation and the advancement of cutting-edge technologies," Minister Responsible for Innovation Saskatchewan Jeremy Harrison said in a media release. "The SAIF and AGF programs support companies in our province's core sectors to accelerate their technologies, driving job creation and economic growth."
BrewNature Composting developed modular composting tech capable of reducing composting times from three months to just five days, 95 per cent faster than traditional practices.
Their $95,000 in SAIF funding will be used to advance BrewNature's technology and enable it to upscale its operations, enhance its composting processes and develop innovative solutions for organic waste management.
"By leveraging SAIF funding, BrewNature aims to have a significant impact on mitigating climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with organic waste decomposition and promoting sustainable practices in waste management," Brew Nature CEO & Founder Babak Roshani said.
"We are excited about the environmental benefits of our composting technology and its impact on and contribution to the circular economy."
PathoScan Technologies enables farmers to perform tests on crops with its user-friendly kits.
It detects pathogens in crops in as little as 45 minutes.
They received $75,000 in support through the AGF.
"AGF funding helped us significantly speed up the development time of our automated grain grading product by allowing us to add infrastructure, advance field testing and enhance our academic partnerships," Ground Truth Ag CEO Kyle Folk said. "We were able to get to market faster and with a more complete product."
The government says SAIF has committed over $14.7 million in 59 projects, resulting in more than $50 million in private investment and $103 million in post-project investment since 2019.
Similarly, since AGF launched in 2020, the program has invested over $4.4 million in 23 projects, resulting in more than $19.4 million in private investment and $25.3 million in post-project investment.
One of the companies who received funding in the past was GroundTruth.Ag.
“[The grants] provided us with capital injections that were catalysts for our product development,” COO Divysh Patel said.
The ag-tech company developed a grain grader which gives more accurate grades to crop.
“Without those programs, we would not be where we are today,” Patel added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Defence rests without Donald Trump taking the witness stand in his New York hush money trial
Donald Trump's lawyers rested their defence Tuesday without the former president taking the witness stand in his New York hush money trial.
Passenger killed, 30 injured as Singapore Airlines flight hits severe turbulence
One passenger was killed and 30 injured after a Singapore Airlines SIAL.SI flight from London hit severe turbulence en route on Tuesday, forcing it to make an emergency landing in Bangkok, officials and the airline said.
Feels like mid-30s in parts of Canada, while other areas expecting snow
Anything is possible this week, as far as Canada's weather is concerned, with forecasts ranging from scorching heat in some parts of the country to rain and snow in others.
Canada's inflation cools to 3-year low of 2.7%, in boost for rate cut bets
Canada's annual inflation rate slowed to a three-year low of 2.7 per cent in April, matching expectations, and core measures continued to ease, data showed on Tuesday, likely boosting chances of a June interest rate cut.
Trump campaign calls 'The Apprentice' 'blatantly false,' director offers to screen it for him
Donald Trump's reelection campaign called 'The Apprentice,' a film about the former U.S. president in the 1980s, 'pure fiction' and vowed legal action following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. But director Ali Abbasi is offering to privately screen the film for Trump.
Nestle to sell $5 pizza, sandwiches in the U.S. for Wegovy, Ozempic users
Nestle NESN.S will market a new, US$5 line of frozen pizzas and protein-enriched pastas in the United States which it says it designed specifically for people taking drugs such as Wegovy or Ozempic for weight loss.
What is BORG drinking, and why is it a dangerous trend? An expert explains
If you've been to a party lately and haven't seen someone drinking a BORG, you're likely not partying with college students.
Independent stores and grocery alternatives see sales boost amid Loblaw boycott
As the month-long boycott of Loblaw-owned stores wears on, small independent food retailers and alternative grocery options say they're seeing a boost in traffic and sales.
London judge rejects Prince Harry's bid to add allegations against Rupert Murdoch in tabloid lawsuit
Prince Harry can't expand his privacy lawsuit against The Sun tabloid publisher to include allegations that Rupert Murdoch and some other executives were part of an effort to conceal and destroy evidence of unlawful information gathering, a London judge ruled Tuesday.