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Building Networks to Advance Plant Health

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on increasing coordination and strategic planning between plant health partners to address plant health risks.

Target Audience

Partners across the value chain with a focus on bringing together plant health partners to increase coordination and strategic planning across the sector in support of plant health priorities

Eligible Projects

Establishing governance frameworks and networks between plant health partners to proactively address plant health risks where networks include information dissemination or coordination of a larger set of stakeholders.

Examples of projects

The establishment and coordination of:

  • A grower-led resistance management leaders network
  • A provincial Laboratory Network for plant health
  • Networks aimed at increasing coordination/communication of specific disease/pest issues (e.g., Soybean Cyst Nematode, Fireblight)

Project Category Priorities

Projects that:

  • Clearly communicate how the network will remain sustainable beyond the initial funding period
  • Establish and coordinate a forum to regularly prioritize and address plant health issues of concern
  • Establish and coordinate a peer-to-peer learning network to promote resistance management practices
  • Establish and coordinate a network for Ontario laboratory partners to work together on plant health monitoring, diagnostics and communication of findings
  • Involve more than one commodity or sector
  • Address areas that possess greatest plant health risks, e.g., pepper weevil, Tomato Looper, Clubroot, Spotted Lanternfly, European Cherry Fruit Fly, Tuta absoluta, noxious weed control

Eligible Activities

  • Data collection and management to support improved coordination between plant health partners

Ineligible Activities

  • Activities not related to improving plant health or public health

See Terms and Conditions

Applied Research, Pilot Projects and Demonstrations

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on testing and demonstrating new plant health practices, technologies and solutions at a scale that enables conclusions to be drawn regarding their technical feasibility, applicability and economic viability. Projects therefore establish an essential link between research and the market. This project category is meant to incentivize practical innovation to build solutions to plant health issues encountered by the industry. Through knowledge and technology transfer and translation, these projects advance understanding of the industry at large.

Target Audience

Partners across the value chain with a focus on testing and demonstrating practical solutions in support of plant health priorities

Eligible Projects

Projects must address pest and disease management practices and/or address resistance management practices. Projects can encompass one or more of the following and must include a demonstrated knowledge translation and transfer plan:

  • Applied research
  • Testing of new technologies
  • Validation studies/proof of concept
  • Pilot projects
  • Demonstration projects

Examples of projects

  • Validating alternative chemical and non-chemical pest control options
  • Conducting pest risk assessments (e.g., Predicting Invasive Insects/Diseases/Weeds)
  • Developing and/or validating predictive tools (e.g., Growing Degree Day)
  • Developing and/or validating best practices for emergency management, resistance management, biosecurity

Project Category Priorities

Projects that are highly valued include those:

  • That focus on new emerging pests or emerging crops
  • That involve small or emerging agriculture sector associations
  • That address a specific new market opportunity or mitigate risks that require additional data or validation prior to implementation
  • With impact and benefits beyond a specific commodity
  • That involve more than one commodity or sector
  • That promote sustainable practices in agriculture
  • That address pest and disease management practices
  • That address resistance management practices

Eligible Activities

  • Disseminating best practices, outcomes and learnings derived from pilot projects, validation studies and demonstrations.
  • Investigating methods, processes or applications to mitigate plant pests and pest related risks
  • Demonstrating market benefits, risk mitigation or enhanced competitiveness as a direct result of project implementation
  • Enhanced efficiencies and new technologies to capture and share data related to traceability
  • Supporting plant health, or related public health, pest management and biosecurity monitoring systems, including demonstrated benefit to the sector or society at large
  • May include costs associated with specialist staff (e.g., entomologists) providing services to support the completion of project activities

Ineligible Activities

  • Activities not related to improving plant health or public health
  • Piloting and demonstrating solutions or systems that are not in alignment with existing codes of practice

See Terms and Conditions

Skills Development, Training and Education

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on building plant health capacity in the industry by improving and supporting awareness and knowledge of plant health risks and how to address them. In addition, this category aims to encourage specialized knowledge in the industry through training on the identification, assessment, and mitigation of plant health risks.

Target Audience

Partners across the value chain with a focus on increasing awareness, knowledge and skills of the sector in support of plant health priorities

Eligible Projects

Projects can encompass one or more of the following and must include a demonstrated knowledge translation and transfer plan:

  • Outreach strategies
  • Skills development and training
  • Knowledge acquisition and knowledge sharing
  • Workshops
  • Needs Assessments

Examples of projects

  • Training focused on resistance management, biosecurity, or emergency preparedness

Project Category Priorities

Projects that clearly demonstrate the following:

  • Training program or material development that addresses a gap/need in the sector, where training program/materials do not currently exist
  • Impact and benefits beyond their specific commodity
  • Involvement with more than one commodity or sector
  • Promotion of sustainable practices in agriculture
  • Addressing pest, disease and weed surveillance and management practices

Eligible Activities

  • Improving or supporting general awareness, and knowledge of plant health, reducing plant health risks, pest management and biosecurity risks, and implementing traceability systems and plant health codes of practice
  • Disseminating plant health best practices
  • Enhancing or supporting the implementation of biosecurity standards through education and awareness
  • Activities related to training on disease, weed and pest identification and plant health status, assessment of biosecurity risks, and development of plans to mitigate those risks
  • Developing/conducting a needs assessment or strategy for the creation of education and training materials or for sector outreach

Ineligible Activities

  • Activities not related to improving plant health or public health
  • Purchase of capital and equipment

See Terms and Conditions

Plant Health Best Practices

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on advancing plant health through development and evaluation of plant health best practices.

Target Audience

Partners across the value chain with a focus on the development and evaluation of best practices in support of plant health priorities

Eligible Projects

Projects can encompass one or more of the following and must include a demonstrated knowledge translation and transfer plan:

  • Development of plant health best practices or industry standards
  • Evaluation of plant health best practices or industry standards

Examples of projects

  • Evaluations of new technologies or equipment to facilitate the improvement of plant health
  • Cost-benefit analysis of pepper weevil screening methods in Ontario greenhouses
  • An economic assessment of biocontrol techniques to suppress pepper weevil
  • An economic comparison of pesticide use and application methods to control spotted lanternfly in stone fruits
  • An economic comparison of pesticide use and application methods to control tuta absoluta in tomato plants

Project Category Priorities

Projects that:

  • Incorporate a cost-benefit analysis of plant health practices from an economic perspective
  • Have the ability to impact multiple industry stakeholders
  • Advance plant health programs in commodities not being addressed through existing processes
  • Focus on new emerging pests, emerging crops, and small associations

Recommended Cost-share

  • Up to $25,000 per project

Eligible Activities

  • Activities that improve the ability and capacity to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond effectively to infectious plant disease, weed or pest situations that can impact the broader sector or society at large
  • Activities that demonstrate market benefits or enhanced assurance systems as a direct result of their implementation
  • Implementation of new technologies or equipment to facilitate the improvement of plant health

Ineligible Activities

  • Activities not related to improving plant health or public health
  • Development and implementation of programs that lack credible, scientific backing

See Terms and Conditions