Blueberries hang from a plant with a rich green and leafy background.

The Challenge

Create and deliver a market-ready system to reliably, sustainably, and competitively produce berries out-of-season and at scale in Canada.

At the Weston Family Foundation, we want to see innovators solve the problem of out-of-season production of berries – not only in the laboratory, but also at scale in the greenhouse or on the farm.

Why Berries?

Starting with berries is an important first step in extending the country’s growing season for all fresh produce. This will advance agricultural sustainability and enable a more resilient food system in Canada.

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Canadians eat a lot of berries.

According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, we imported 147,607 metric tonnes of strawberries alone in 2022, and exported just 5,465 metric tonnes the same year.

Imported berries travel a long way.

Growing more berries in Canada will reduce their carbon footprint, and could increase the quality and quantity of varieties available in stores.

Berries are valuable crops.

In 2022, three berries were among Canada’s top five fruit imports by dollar value: strawberries ($667 million), raspberries ($615 million), and highbush blueberries ($477 million). If we can give domestic growers a competitive edge, berry crops are ripe with opportunity for our agricultural industry.

Berries are nutritional powerhouses.

Berries are good for you. A Harvard Medical School study found that eating berries at least three times per week lowered the risk of heart attacks. Berries are also full of antioxidants and fibre which can lower cancer risk.

Solving the berry problem will generate solutions for other crops.

Berries are among the most challenging crops to grow out-of-season. The idea is that the technology and solutions will be adaptable to other fruits and vegetables in northern climates.

Our Support

We’re committed to supporting Canada’s innovators. The Homegrown Innovation Challenge is offering up to $8 million in funding to the winning team.

We are offering up to $33 million in grant funding to the teams that successfully navigate through the Spark, Shepherd and Scaling phases of the Challenge. A single innovation team that participates in every phase of the Challenge and goes on to win the final prizes could receive up to $8 million.

In addition to funding, the Weston Family Foundation offers grantees networking and mentoring opportunities, as well as communications support to further the impact of their work.

How the Challenge Works

The Homegrown Innovation Challenge is made up of three distinct phases (click on the arrows to expand):

Spark Phase, including Spark Awards:

(Applications are now closed)

The top 15 grantee teams selected by an independent judging panel were awarded $50,000 each to develop their concepts along with detailed plans for how they would implement and scale the concepts during the later phases of the competition. These solutions reached Technology Readiness Level 2 or higher by the end of the Spark Phase and before being submitted to the Shepherd Phase.

Participation in the Spark Phase was not a prerequisite to apply to the Shepherd Phase of the Challenge.

Shepherd Phase:

(Applications are now closed)

The top 11 grantee teams selected by an independent judging panel were awarded up to $1 million each over an 18-month period to develop a small-scale proof of concept for their growing systems. Solutions must reach Technology Readiness Level 5 or higher by the end of the Shepherd Phase and before being submitted to the Scaling Phase.

Only grantee teams that received funding under the Shepherd Phase are eligible to participate in the Scaling Phase.

Scaling Phase:

(Applications deadline late 2024)

The top four grantee teams selected from the Shepherd Phase will be awarded up to $5 million each over three years to build and demonstrate their system at farm scale in Canada. At the end of the Scaling Phase, teams must provide the judging panel with evidence that berries were produced out-of-season at the target costs, inputs, and other specified parameters. Solutions should reach Technology Readiness Level 8 or higher before being submitted for final assessment.

Final Assessment and Prizes

At the end of the Challenge, two $1-million prizes will be awarded.

Technology Breakthrough Winner:

The team that has demonstrated the greatest technological innovation.

Overall Challenge Winner:

The team that has best met the challenge to create and deliver a market-ready system to reliably, sustainably, and competitively produce berries out-of-season and at scale in Canada.

The prizes may be awarded to two different teams or the same team.