Anytime during the growing season, Jake Leguee can look to the app to see exactly how much moisture is in the ground on his farm.
He installed six weather stations throughout his property. The land is third generation land that he farms with his family near Fillmore, Sask in the southeastern part of the state to streamline his operations. The station tracks various factors that affect crops, including air and soil temperature, moisture levels and wind. Developed by an agricultural technology company in Saskatchewan, the app helps him interpret the data.
“This has made a big difference in how we manage our crops. We don’t put inputs in if we don’t need them, which makes them more environmentally sustainable,” says Leguee.
Announced two years ago, the federal government’s goal of reducing emissions from fertilizer use by 30% below 2020 levels by 2030 rekindled in the public consciousness Because this spring and summer there was a series of consultations on how that could be achieved.
But Canadian farmers have long worked to make their operations, including the use of inputs, as efficient as possible, and the willingness to learn, try, and adopt new technologies is what drives their jobs, Leguee said. is essential to
According to industry experts, that’s one reason Saskatchewan has become the new hub for agricultural technology. Additionally, the state’s farmers have a track record of adopting new technologies and supporting local startups, he said of his $60 million Conexus venture capital fund focused on AG tech startups in Saskatchewan. said Sean O’Connor, managing director of Emmertech.
“From what we know, farmers are Canada’s most innovative business owners, and they are looking for new solutions,” he says.
“You can’t have agtech companies on Bay Street. They belong in the agricultural ecosystem that is directly interacting with the industry itself.”
“Great place to do business”
Croptimistic Technology is one Saskatchewan-based agricultural technology company with a local love. Launched in 2018 at Naicam to develop custom soil, water and terrain (SWAT) maps for farmers.
“It’s a great place to do business,” says founder Corey Willnes, who worked as an agronomist for many years before starting the company. “We generally have a lot of farmers in western Canada who are early adopters.”
Croptimistic’s SWAT map helps farmers pinpoint exactly which parts of their fields need nutrients and which don’t, which can increase profits by about 15%, Willness says. says Mr. He gave the following example: If a farmer spent his $5 million on fertilizer and seed, but his 5% of that acre was written off, that’s him a loss of $250,000.
Croptimistic is a good companion. In Regina, Precision AI has developed artificial intelligence drones that perform fully automated precision spraying, while Ground Truth Ag is a technology that helps farmers analyze and record grain samples in real time to better understand crop quality. developed. Crop Intelligence, located in nearby Emerald Park, offers an app that helps farmers analyze data from weather stations to make better production decisions and improve crop quality and profits.
Potential for better yields
Dr. Stuart Smith, Research Chair for Agri-Food Innovations at the University of Saskatchewan, says the technology will not only allow farmers to use less crop inputs to reduce costs, but also increase yield potential. .
For example, if a farmer has 320 acres of land and can determine that the disease affects only 5% of the crop, the cost of fertilizing the entire land is higher than the cost of the lost crop. may become.
“I tell my students that in the next decade, the use of these digital technologies definitely has the potential to revolutionize the way we do productive agriculture,” says Smyth.
Agriculture accounted for 10% of Canada’s total emissions in 2019, according to the federal government, and fertilizer use increased by 71% from 2005 to 2019.
“that is Farmers Win, Environment WinsWillnes said of improving fertilizer efficiency:
Startup support
In addition to tech-enthusiastic farmers, O’Connor said Saskatchewan has a supportive startup ecosystem, with major industry players such as Brandt, AGT Foods and Protein Industries Canada, as well as the state’s economic and technology development agencies. (such as Innovation Saskatchewan) exist. – Prioritize Agtech.
I often hear, “You’ll never go into a farm. They’re just doing what your grandfather did.” But I’ve never seen one.– Jason McNamee, Lucent Biosciences
When Jason McNamee pitched the idea for Soileos at a tech startup contest in Saskatchewan in 2019, he and his Vancouver-based team at Lucent Biosciences found acceptance in the ecosystem. .
Although they failed to beat the competition, they caught the attention of the CEO of AGT Foods.
“Murad Al-Katib came up to me right after the pitch and said ‘Are you saying what I’m saying?’ And he gave me his card. ,” recalls McNamee.
A few months later, AGT and Lucent partnered with a consortium of other companies to win a $19 million grant from Protein Industries Canada.
Lucent has now completed development of a new production facility in Rosetown, Sask, which employs approximately 20 people and has the capacity to produce approximately 7,000 tons of product per year. They expect his Soileos to be available to Saskatchewan farmers by next spring.
“Saskatchewan’s agritech community is very strong,” says McNamee. “I often hear, ‘You’re never going to be a farmer. They’re just doing what their grandfathers did.’ But I’ve never seen any of that.”
overcoming hurdles
There is still a long way to go before Saskatchewan’s tech industry can really take off, and some big challenges lie ahead.
First, more investment is needed, says O’Connor. This is evidenced by the fact that his $182 million venture capital was put into Canadian agtech last year, compared to $4.9 billion he put in in the US.
One of the challenges in procuring investment in this space is that the industry is poorly understood, the development and adoption of this technology requires more time, and investors find it difficult to make a profit. O’Connor says it means it takes time to get it.
Finally, small businesses here struggle to hire local staff, especially in software development, Willness said.
“That’s probably one of the biggest challenges. Trying to compete with others to find tech talent. It’s a very hot sector.”
Still, the fact that Saskatchewan has already developed and invested in this level of agricultural technology is good news for Western Canada, O’Connor said.
“Once upon a time, it didn’t belong to a major center. Instead of fighting over crumbs, we get our own slice of bread.”
