The Ontario government is spending more than $3.6 million on 12 projects to help develop new technologies, recover from the impacts of COVID-19 and enhance competitiveness and innovation.
The money is drawn from the Greenhouse Competitiveness and Innovation Initiative (GCII).
Four of the projects are:
For Allegro Acres Inc., $999,345 to test the impact of up to 24 hours continuous low intensity lighting on a commercial scale with the aim of reducing electricity costs.
For Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers, $149,634 to develop a cost-effective anti-viral coating technology to treat tools and surfaces to reduce the spread of plant and human viruses.
For Great Lakes Greenhouses Inc, $547,720 to use artificial intelligence to develop an autonomous grower technology that will enhance environmental sustainability, accelerate transition to year-round production, support crop diversification and improve long-term resiliency and competitiveness. The technology will allow greenhouse operators to remotely grow cucumbers and eggplant crops, reducing in-person contact and allowing them to manage more sites remotely.
For Flowers Canada, $89,013 to help the greenhouse sector optimize dehumidification systems to achieve energy recovery savings and improve successful plant production at greenhouse floriculture operations.
