The Government of Canada invests in innovation to support the Canadian greenhouse sector
November 26, 2018 – The Canadian greenhouse sector is the largest and fastest growing segment of Canadian horticulture, thanks to the dedication and endless hard work from our growers across the country. This past year, Canadian greenhouse vegetable sales totalled over $1.4 billion, with over $900 million of sales in Ontario.
Today, Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food was at the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre to announce a federal investment of up to $5 million to the Automation Cluster under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership. The Cluster will be led by the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre Inc.
Canada’s agricultural sector faces significant labour challenges and the greenhouse industry has the largest labour gap. It is estimated that labour shortages can cost the sector up to $1.5 billion in lost productivity and sales. The Automation Cluster will help address labour costs and availability through automation, artificial intelligence and precision agriculture technologies in the horticulture sector.
