Still in its infancy in Quebec, aeroponics could soon enter a new era, judging by the ambitions of Éric and Antoine Deschambault. With the help of Université Laval, father and son are fine-tuning a large-scale, largely automated production system, which will eventually be sold on a turnkey basis to various entrepreneurs.

It may sound like science fiction, but the goal couldn’t be more earthly: cheaper groceries.

Berries are being grown inside a unique tunnel north of London and if the system that utilizes solar energy, lights, heat pumps and water pumps works, it will cheat Canadian winters and climate change and undercut the price of imported fruits and vegetables, said Joshua Pearce, a Western University electrical engineering professor.

A team from the University of Guelph is taking part in a research challenge to grow off-season strawberries in Canada.

Two University of Guelph-led research teams aiming to change the way fresh produce is grown in Canada have entered the second phase of the Homegrown Innovation Challenge, a $33-million challenge prize to grow berries out of season and at scale in Canada. The initiative is funded and delivered by the Weston Family Foundation. 

The Homegrown Innovation Challenge is an XPRIZE-style competition trying to jumpstart the new grocery-store reality by offering millions of dollars in prize money to teams finding ways to grow berries out of season and at scale in Canada.

Local universities team up to revolutionize berry cultivation.

In an ambitious effort to meet the increasing demand for raspberries year-round, researchers from Bishop’s University (BU) and Université de Sherbrooke (UdeS) are pioneering a sustainable agricultural technique that could revolutionize berry cultivation in Canada. The project, titled “CANberries,” involves extending the natural growing season of raspberries to ensure availability irrespective of traditional seasonal limitations and climate conditions.

Leading this innovative endeavor are Dr. Mirella Aoun of the Department of Environment, Agriculture and Geography at BU, and Dr. Sébastien Poncet from the Faculté de Génie at UdeS.

Raspberries will be harvested in two weeks’ time at Bishop’s University in Sherbrooke, even though winter has just ended. Thanks to the work of the university’s researchers, a fully-equipped greenhouse has been built in which the berries can be grown for nine months of the year.

A team of Simon Fraser University (SFU) researchers is working to develop new plant varieties and precision indoor growing techniques for producing fresh, local blueberries during the off-season for the first time.

Eleven teams take up challenge to revolutionize food production in Canada.

“If we listen to plants, we can change the world!” says botanist Lesley Campbell, PhD, describing part of the inspiration behind the raspberry growing system she is developing with her partner, mechanical engineer Habiba Bougherara, PhD, at Toronto Metropolitan University.  

Entrepreneurs, researchers, communities and a patron of the arts: a synergy that pushes innovative projects to unexpected heights.