While Niagara, Canada is known as Ontario’s fruit basket and produces 80 per cent of the country’s grapes and wine, agri-business here extends far beyond the wine cellar and the fruit stand. Niagara, Canada has always offered some of North America’s best growing conditions, but today, technology, research and new approaches are changing the face of farming here in a most profitable way.
More Bucks Per Basket
Thanks in part to higher value crops and technology and automation driving higher yields per acre, between 2011 and 2016 Niagara, Canada farms experienced a 15.5% increase in gross farm receipts and average net farm revenues increased by 47%. In that same time period, gross farm receipt value per acre increased by 18%.
A Bumper Crop of R&D Support
Ground breaking research taking place in Niagara, Canada is developing innovative approaches to the way crops are being grown and used here and around the world. From precision agriculture to bio-manufacturing, creative new solutions go from lab to local thanks to collaborative partnerships encouraged by the region’s diverse collection of research institutes, including:
- Niagara College Agriculture and Environment Innovation Centre
- Niagara College Food and Wine Institute
- Brock University Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute
- Brock University Advanced Bio-manufacturing Centre
- Vineland Research and Innovation Centre
Great Places to Grow
Niagara, Canada is home to over 215,000 acres of farmland that benefits from the Niagara Escarpment’s unique impact on the soil and the modifying offshore breezes of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. In addition, Niagara, Canada has one of the highest concentrations of greenhouses in the country, offering 22 million square feet of space to keep things growing across all the seasons.
A Market Leader in Canada’s Next Top Crop
Niagara, Canada has 1.86 million square feet of licensed, approved cannabis cultivation at six licensed locations. Applications for additional growers are currently under Health Canada review and Niagara, Canada’s cannabis industry is expected to double in size by 2019. At 1,000,000 square feet, Tweed Farms in Niagara-on-the-Lake is currently the world’s largest cannabis greenhouse operation. Niagara College’s new Commercial Cannabis Production program will provide a pool of talent that is highly skilled in cannabis plant nutrition, growing environments, lighting, climate control, pest control and cultivar selection.
If you would like to know more about incentive programs, or would like more information on agri-business in Niagara, contact Kelly Provost, Economic Development Officer, at 905-980-6000 x3334 or kelly.provost@niagararegion.ca.