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Croptracker has a dashboard that allows a grower or a worker to manage the crop data collected.
News

Ontario company launches AI-based system to help automate fruit harvest

Croptracker traces fruit through the production process, but new image collection options can analyze fruit in bins for more efficient marketing and delivery

By
An Ontario software company is helping fruit and vegetable growers automate more of their labour-intensive harvest processes using artificial intelligence. Croptracker has just unveiled its latest innovation — Harvest Quality Vision — at the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention in Niagara. Why it matters: Many aspects of fruit and vegetable production still require manual labour, […] Read more
Bethany Desphande is the co-founder and CEO of SomaDetect.
News

Canadian company chosen for global agriculture business accelerator

SomaDetect will be part of the Pearse Lyons Accelerator’s latest group

By
A glance at the startups that form part of the latest cohort at a global ag tech accelerator, paints a vivid picture of where the future of farming is going. Sensors, blockchain, cell-cultured meat, biotechnology and artificial intelligence feature among the 2019 cohort of the Pearse Lyons Accelerator — and it also includes a homegrown […] Read more
News

New system lets farmers make money off their farm data

Farmers will be able to own and control their data and decide when it can be shared or purchased

By
Whether we know it or not, data is being gathered with every Facebook visit, link click, or Google map search we make. Smartphones transmit information about our location and activities; every online purchase provides someone with information that is used and analyzed. Most people have no idea this is happening and most certainly no idea […] Read more
Rob Wong of Agri-Neo.
News

Made-in-Ontario food safety treatment for dry foods now used across North America

Product helps reduce food safety issues on foods that can’t be otherwise sanitized before consumption

By
An Ontario company has developed a biodegradable organic sanitizer specifically to eliminate microbes on dry foods like seeds, nuts, and powders. Foods treated with Neo-Pure are now sold in major grocers across North America, including Loblaw, Whole Foods, Costco and Trader Joe’s — and new technology for treating wheat flour is in the pipeline. “Most […] Read more
WEEDit has created a spot spraying product that determines where weeds are located before spraying.
Crops, Machinery

Solving spray problems with new technology

Sprayer innovations can help reduce herbicide resistance by making sure lethal doses are delivered to weeds

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How farmers spray their crops — not just what they spray — could be contributing to growing weed resistance across Canada. Technology is emerging, though, that can help overcome common spraying challenges. That’s according to Tom Wolf, President of Agrimetrix Research and Training, a Saskatoon-based company that specializes in spray application. Why it matters: Smart […] Read more
This is what the tiny tiger nut tubers look like after harvest.
News

Lessons from developing a new Ontario crop

Tiger nuts can be made into dairy alternatives, but oils, proteins and starches can be extracted as well

By
It’s been a long time coming, but Andrea Orazi is thrilled that her frozen dessert is now available in more than 200 Eastern Canada Loblaw stores. The locally produced ice cream-style product is made from tiger nuts — a crop that isn’t actually a nut but could present a new market opportunity for enterprising Ontario […] Read more
Steve Shirtliffe demonstrates a min-till rotary hoe.
Machinery

Evaluating mechanical weed control options

Researchers found that when two methods are used, weed control improves

By
With the rise of herbicide resistant weeds, researchers at the University of Saskatchewan are looking into alternative weed control methods focused on in-crop mechanical tools to give growers new management options. Why it matters: Farmers are looking for alternative solutions to deal with herbicide resistant weeds that are becoming tougher to control and are affecting […] Read more
Palmer amaranth.
Crops

Weed survival can be predicted via imagery

Researchers using imagery to predict viability of Palmer amaranth

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Researchers are putting imaging technology to work to improve weed management practices. Maor Matzrafi of the department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis, has been evaluating the use of hyperspectral imaging technology to assess germination and herbicide response in Palmer amaranth. Why it matters: Weed resistance to glyphosate, a broad spectrum herbicide, […] Read more
Beef cattle certification programs are driving more need for identification and data recording.
Livestock

Certification programs create need for more farm data

Transparency certification can help assure farmers about data usage

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AgSights, the producer-owned Ontario co-operative behind the Go360 bioTrack livestock tracking system, has achieved Ag Data Transparent certification. It’s the third organization in Canada to be awarded this designation, which means the organization is open and transparent about its data policies. Why it matters: Increasing amounts of data are being collected on farms across Canada […] Read more
Camelina is gaining in popularity because of its high oil levels and presence of Omega 3 fatty acids.
Crops

Online sales can help drive specialty crop products

Camelina is being tested in Ontario to see if it works in crop rotations here

By
More often than not, the first instinct of consumers today is to head online when they’re looking to buy something. That’s less the case when it comes to the traditional agricultural market of inputs and supplies. And it certainly wasn’t on Jack Grushcow’s mind when his company, Linneaus Plant Sciences Inc., first discovered somewhat by […] Read more

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