A paradigm shift in how food and beverage companies are securing their financial future is happening, and it’s shaping innovation in the agri-food space.

Editorial: Big food investments growing in agriculture

Ten years ago, the news that a food company such as McCain Foods Ltd. purchased predictive crop technology company Resson would have raised a few eyebrows.  Many may have wondered what a company known for its frozen French fries would want with a company that develops digital technology for farmers. But in recent years, such […] Read more

No one company has yet to find the sweet spot in data delivery for farmers.

Opinion: Tiny tech now dominant in agriculture

A giant hole was punched through the berm around the dam on the Maitland River in Gorrie during a flood a few years ago.  I grew up on my family’s farm near Gorrie and it’s strange to see the whole dam now gone as the decision was made to remove it instead of rebuild it. […] Read more

Sougata Pahari (r) and Jim Clark (l) of Korechi Innovations, pictured with one of their company’s prototype RoamIO robots at Haggerty Creek in 2020. The robot design was the foundation of a larger farm platform now used by the Bothwell business.

Why is Ontario a hub for ag tech development?

Diversity of industry, prolific expertise and other factors help propel innovation

Robotics and autonomous equipment are taking the agriculture sector by storm, or at least appear poised to do so in some areas. For technology developers in Ontario, a diverse economic environment and comparatively large pool of expertise have helped make the province one of many artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics development hubs. Daniel Bath, research […] Read more

Agronomy research grows on local, international level

Agronomy research grows on local, international level

Veritas Farm Management takes a multi-faceted approach to farm profitability, environmental study

Ontario agricultural service provider Veritas Farm Management continues to grow from its Chatham-Kent roots and now has projects in data-based agronomy across North America.  Established in 2010 and acquired by Deveron in 2015, the company’s role as an independent, data-based agronomy consultant has expanded to include projects with Michigan State University, American agricultural retail companies, […] Read more

Ag-tech start-up Easton Robotics founder believes the use of small robots in conjunction with existing equipment is more realistic than larger, autonomous vehicles.

Supplementing — not replacing — large tractors with autonomy

There are opportunities for small robots on small grain farms

There is ample opportunity for robots on small farms if prices can fit with lower economies of scale. That philosophy is the driving force behind Maryland-based ag-tech start-up Easton Robotics. According to founder and chief executive officer Jeff Chandler, however, the idea that small farmers will replace their big tractors with autonomous vehicles, or use […] Read more


The Pixaberry unit holds a strawberry. It is being developed in British Columbia.

Startups compete for Canadian Thrive challenge

Seafood traceability software takes top spot

A seafood traceability company took top spot in a recent challenge organized by Thrive, a Silicon Valley agricultural technology investor. Nine Canadian agriculture and food startups competed as finalists, with British Columbia seafood traceability company ThisFish taking the top spot. Why it matters: As the agriculture and food sectors shift towards digitization and precision tools, […] Read more

Opinion: Technology changes – but adoption barriers don’t

Opinion: Technology changes – but adoption barriers don’t

Farmers are still waiting for companies to explain their new technology proposition

The capabilities of digital technologies change regularly, but how developers speak about adoption in the ag-sector doesn’t. The rhetoric and questions posed are the same as those asked several years ago — namely, what is required for more farms to adopt data technologies? The fact that such a fundamental question has not changed makes me […] Read more

All arrows represent airflow. Blue arrows are cool ambient air. Red arrows represent heated air. Blue arrows show air entering the dryer through the bottom fan. The bottom one-third of the dryer cools the grain. The burner is not being used for the bottom section so the arrow and cut away remain blue, although these dryers can operate in an all-heat mode to heat the lower section if needed. Above the lower cooling section there are two more blue arrows entering the heat section of the dryer. As the air passes over a burner it becomes heated and enters the red section of the dryer. The gray arrows represent exhaust air. Both heated and non-heated air enters the ducts and pass through the grain until they exit through an exhaust duct. The cutaway shows the air moving out of the exhaust ducts.

Improved screenless drying means lower fire risk

A new dryer tumbles grain side to side as it dries

Glacier FarmMedia – Conventional screen-type grain dryers allow kernels to be placed directly on the hot screen, thus damaging those kernels. However, there are a small number of dryers that don’t use a screen. Dave Wall of Wall Grain has been selling dryers since the early 1980s including his Vertec, Ibec, Neco or MC dryers. […] Read more


Understanding regular cattle weights allows more precise management of beef cattle.

Bringing Big Data to the Canadian beef industry

Drinking station also records cattle weights accessible by device

An Irish startup with a Canadian connection has developed what it says is the world’s first completely automated livestock performance and health monitoring system. StrongBó Agritech’s BovineHub collects and analyzes live data through its automated weighing system that company founder and CEO Micheál McInerney believes has the potential to reshape modern beef production. Its trials […] Read more

Perry Casson, founder of FarmTRX, has a look at a combine.

Universal yield monitor available in Ontario

FarmTRX system adaptable to all combines, old and new

The Troo Corp., a web-based mapping and tracking company, released a universally adaptable, Canadian-designed yield monitor in Ontario this year. Called FarmTRX, the company is touting the technology as cost-effective, accurate, and easy-to-use yield mapping system that can be retrofitted onto combines of all colours, size, and vintage. Why it matters: Yield monitoring technology is […] Read more