Skip to content

$170,000 in grants provided to Abbotsford farm projects

ACF provides Agriculture Enhancement Grants to five farm projects to benefit local agriculture
29526044_web1_210401-ABB-Agritech-grants_1

The Abbotsford Community Foundation (ACF) has announced the recipients of the 2022 Agricultural Enhancement Grants. A total of $170,000 was granted to five farming initiatives that met the project criteria of agriculture innovation with a technology focus, including research and development, that will benefit the local agriculture industry overall.

The ACF has been providing grants to the agricultural sector in Abbotsford since 2013. “We are proud to partner with the City of Abbotsford to provide grants annually to our farming community,” said Marcus Janzen, ACF board chair and chair of the Agricultural Enhancement Grants committee. “ACF has provided more than $1,000,000 through our Agriculture Enhancement Grants over the past nine years in support of one of Abbotsford’s key economic drivers,” added Janzen.

In 2022, the grants program focused on innovation in advancing technologies or research to benefit the agricultural sector in Abbotsford. Each of the grant recipients have projects that meet these criteria and the committee is excited about their potential. The ACF agriculture grants committee is composed of local farmers and individuals with a passion for serving the Abbotsford farming community.

Executive director Wendy Neufeld remarked that there were a number of worthy applications.

“Our Agriculture Grants committee chose five excellent projects whose outcomes will have a positive impact on agriculture in our community,” she said.

A presentation of the grants was held on June 22 at Nature’s Pickins Market featuring a lunch using locally sourced farm produce and meats. Each recipient was given the opportunity to provide an overview of their project and the expected outcomes.

The recipients are: AMS (Air Microfluidic Systems Inc) & WML (University of Waterloo Microfluidic Lab), for a low-cost and fast fresh berry harvester without bruising or damage ($50,000); Artisan Sake Maker Inc. for developing best practices for rice production in the Fraser Valley ($25,000); Bakerview EcoDairy Ltd. for development of a living research lab focusing on sustainable beef cattle finishing ($15,000); Circular Harvest Farm Co. for The MushROOM By Circular Harvest ($30,000); Sarcomere Dynamics Inc. for Field Trial – Automation of Agricultural Labour ($50,000).

For more information on how to support Abbotsford Community Foundation’s programs, and see more about the grant recipients visit abbotsfordcf.org or phone 604-850-3755.



Jessica Peters

About the Author: Jessica Peters

I began my career in 1999, covering communities across the Fraser Valley ever since.
Read more