Fruit and Vegetable: Canada and B.C. fund projects combatting climate change and labour shortages

The governments of Canada and B.C. are supporting 10 new projects with more than $1 million through the Canada-British Columbia Agri-Innovation Program (CBCAIP) to help fight climate change, address labour shortages, increase profitability and increase adoption of regenerative agriculture practices. The program is administered by the B.C. Investment Agriculture Foundation.

“Our agricultural producers are the first to feel the effects of climate change and, together with many partners, they are strongly committed to developing and adopting tools and practices to make agriculture increasingly sustainable,” said Marie-Claude Bibeau, federal minister of agriculture and agri-food. “These projects are prime examples of the kind of leadership they are demonstrating that will help us achieve our emission reduction targets.”

Okanagan-based Geotronics Consulting Inc., in partnership with Vintality Tech Inc., is receiving $192,022 to develop a new technology to reduce irrigation in vineyards. The technology will reduce the amount of water used, while maintaining vine health and grape quality. Using a combination of precision viticulture sensor technology with new developments in wireless and mesh networking, the system will allow real-time tracking of water use through sub-soil mapping. This technology could also be applied to other farmed crops that use automatic watering systems, once validated and commercialized.

This article originally featured in Fruit and Vegetable Magazine. Read the full version here.