PAID ADVERTISEMENT DECEMBER 2025 | INNOVATINGCANADA.CA
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A SPECIAL INTEREST SECTION BY MEDIAPLANET
Agricultural Innovation THE HONOURABLE HEATH MACDONALD, MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND AGRI-FOOD CANADA
Why Trade, Innovation and Risk Management Are at the Core of AAFC’s 2025–26 Plan These priorities were chosen because they address the real pressures farmers face today—from shifting markets to climate challenges—while helping the sector stay competitive, adopt new tools and practices, and better manage the risks that are out of producers’ control. Your 2025–26 Departmental Plan highlights trade, innovation, and risk management as your three core priorities. Why were these areas chosen and how do they make a difference for farmers? The AAFC 2025-26 Departmental Plan highlights trade, innovation, and risk management as three main priorities because these areas address the most immediate pressures and long-term opportunities facing Canadian agriculture. Expanding and diversifying markets helps farmers stay competitive and resilient in a global environment where trade relationships are shifting and evolving. Investing in science research and innovation supports producers Read the entire with the tools they need to interview with Minister adapt to climate change, Heath MacDonald
improve productivity, and adopt sustainable practices. Strengthening sector risk management programs ensures farmers can better navigate income volatility, extreme weather, and supply chain disruptions— challenges that have grown more pronounced in recent years. Together, these priorities reflect the need to support the sector’s economic growth while building resilience. What truly matters for farmers is being equipped to capitalize on new opportunities, helping secure the long-term viability of Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector in Canada and around the world.
What new research or practical farm practices is your ministry supporting to help producers increase productivity, adopt
modern techniques, and adapt to a changing climate? AAFC supports producers through applied research and innovation. Our scientists are involved in over 600 projects, more than three-quarters in partnership with industry, focused on delivering practical, science-based solutions that improve productivity, profitability, and sustainability. This work spans many areas including developing new crop varieties that can thrive in current and predicted environmental conditions, developing new techniques to manage pests, advancing disease resistance through genomic research and field trials, and creating digital tools to help producers optimize inputs and reduce costs. These solutions aim to help farmers increase profitability through improved yields, reduced
input costs, and access to innovative technologies, while also supporting practices that enhance climate resilience, protect soil and water resources, and strengthen the long-term stability of Canada’s agricultural economy. Beyond in-house science, AAFC funds programs that accelerate adoption of climate-smart practices. The Agricultural Clean Technology Program supports clean energy, precision agriculture, and bioeconomy solutions, while the On-Farm Climate Action Fund (OFCAF) promotes nitrogen management, cover cropping, and rotational grazing. Since 2022, OFCAF has supported over 7,500 farmers managing 2.4 million hectares and trained 3,000 agrologists and 27,000 producers. These efforts advance Canada’s goal of reducing emissions 45–50 per cent below 2005 levels by 2035.
online at innovating canada.ca.
How Farmers Are Strengthening Canada’s Climate Resilience Farmers are advancing a proven model of environmental stewardship — one few Canadians realize could reshape resilience across the country. Sonya Friesen
Bryan Gilvesy Rancher & Chief Strategy Officer, ALUS
To learn more about ALUS visit alus.ca.
This article was sponsored by ALUS.
A
cross Canada farmers are taking the lead, quietly building the natural defences helping communities withstand a changing climate. For generations, they have understood how soil, water, and weather shape the land — and today, that knowledge is driving local, practical solutions that restore ecosystems and strengthen resilience. For nearly two decades, farmers enrolled in ALUS have driven this leadership, creating natural infrastructure on marginal farmland. Through a community-led, farmer-delivered model, the national charitable organization helps restore wetlands, stabilize waterways and plant native grasses and trees, enhancing habitat in ways that benefit both rural and urban communities. Bryan Gilvesy, a rancher and ALUS’ Chief Strategy Officer, has played a central role in expanding the organization nationwide: “Farmers are not just food producers; they are environmental solution providers.” Today, ALUS supports more than 2,100 farmers and ranchers across 41 communities, stewarding over 57,000 acres of new nature-based projects, the equivalent of more than 40,000 football fields. These aren’t wide swaths of farmland, but targeted projects on marginal acres that, together, create meaningful national impact.
FROM FARM TO FORK:
The Big Impact of Ontario’s Tiny Beans Discover why nutrient-rich Ontario beans are becoming a go-to choice for health-conscious consumers seeking sustainable, affordable and versatile plant-based protein. Janice Tober
D
ry beans are gaining popularity as more consumers adopt flexitarian diets and seek nutritious, affordable plant-based proteins. Health Canada encourages Canadians to eat protein-rich foods regularly and choose plant proteins more often, making beans an ideal option. As part of the legume family, beans are packed with fibre, iron, folate, complex carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals, while being low in fat and cholesterol-free. Ontario is a major producer, growing nine bean varieties and exporting up to 90 per cent of its crop worldwide. Beans are versatile and easy to use—canned varieties can be quickly added to soups or salads, while dried beans make hearty comfort dishes like baked beans. Canned beans retain their nutrients, adding to their convenience. Choosing locally grown beans supports Ontario farmers, strengthens rural economies and increases food security. Ontario bean farmers also prioritize sustainability through crop rotation, soil conservation and ongoing research to improve quality, yield and resilience.
Visit ontariobeans.on.ca for recipes and nutritional tips.
This article was sponsored by Ontario Bean Growers.
POTATO TY:
How One Farmer is Cultivating Innovation and Inspiring the Next Generation From reviving a family farm to launching Canada’s largest “Ugly Potato Day,” Potato Ty is redefining what it means to be a modern farmer — through technology, social media, and a mission-driven approach to food sustainability. Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you got into farming? I grew up on our family potato farm in Cloverdale. From ages 5 to 18, I worked every summer and after school, but at 18 I decided I was done with farming. I went off to university, got a business degree, and then spent five years in corporate America doing sales. Even though the job was good, I started to feel like I was missing a bigger purpose. At 28, I came back to the farm for a one-year trial to give it one last shot. I ended up falling in
love with it—the challenges, the ups and downs, and the sense of purpose I didn’t get anywhere else. I’ve been here ever since.
What does innovation mean to you in agriculture and on your farm? This past year has been the most forward-moving year our farm has ever had. We invested heavily in new harvesting equipment, new packing lines, and new washing systems. We’ve seen firsthand how much more productive we can be when we lean into innovation. But it’s not just
buying equipment—it’s hiring the right people who know how to use it and push it further. For us, innovation is how we take a 100-year-old farm and set it up to last another 100.
You’ve built a strong social media presence as Potato Ty. How does that connect to your work on the farm and your approach to innovation? Social media has been a way for me to encourage people to get into agriculture, and it’s allowed me to show the work we’re doing around food
wa ste a nd food insecurity. Ugly Potato Days and our donation Read the entire programs are a big part interview with of that. It’s also conPotato Ty online at innovating nected me with some of canada.ca. the brightest minds in agriculture—from storage experts to genetics companies to robotics teams. I meet with top companies almost weekly. Those relationships give our farm an edge and help us stay on the cutting edge of what’s coming next.
Publisher: Arlene Asika Sales Director: Anna Sibiga Business Development Manager: Michaela Gallagher Country Manager: Samantha Taylor Content & Client Success Manager: Nicole Kansakar Creative Director: Kylie Armishaw All images are from Getty Images unless otherwise credited. This section was created by Mediaplanet and did not involve The Toronto Star or its editorial departments. Send all inquiries to ca.editorial@mediaplanet.com.