Terramera awarded $2M from Government of Canada to advance work to enable regenerative agriculture at scale

Date:05-25-2022

The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced an investment of over $15.2 million under the Agricultural Clean Technology (ACT) Program to support the adoption of clean technologies for 47 projects throughout Canada, including $2M to Terramera, to advance their work to enable regenerative agriculture at scale.

“The fight against climate change aims to not only reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions, but also to help producers innovate and adopt more sustainable agricultural practices. New investments in the Agricultural Clean Technology Program will support their acquisition of energy-efficient equipment to increase their agricultural productivity and net profits, while improving food security in Canada,” said the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

As part of today’s announcement, Terramera hosted Minister Bibeau to showcase the work underway to provide more consistent and precise measurement of soil carbon and soil health. Through the adoption of clean technologies, it is expected that this project will help to encourage farmers and ranchers to adopt regenerative management practices which will improve the health of their soil and enable their participation in carbon markets to incentivize these practice changes.

"Thank you to Agriculture and Agrifood Canada and the Agricultural Clean Technology Program for this important funding. Investing in soil health and climate-smart regenerative agriculture is one of the most important issues for Canada and the world,” said Karn Manhas, Terramera Founder and CEO. “Soil is critical to food production and farming. Improving soil health and carbon in soils helps lower costs of inputs while improving outputs and nutrition, which means higher profits for farmers. This is a key opportunity to strengthen our economy, and our food security as a nation. In addition, improving soil health sequesters carbon, which can help turn back the clock on climate change, while increasing water retention in soils, and the resilience of farms. These funds will support the soil and carbon measurement technology Terramera is building. This critical infrastructure will result in better tools for agronomists, and support farmers and ranchers to make this opportunity a reality."  

Across British Columbia, up to $2.3 million will support five ACT Program projects. Under the ACT Program, farmers and agri-businesses will have access to funding to help develop and adopt the latest clean technologies to reduce GHG emissions and enhance their competitiveness. This funding is focused on three priority areas: green energy and energy efficiency; precision agriculture; and bioeconomy solutions.

Canada’s agriculture sector plays an important role in the fight against climate change. Through the recently expanded ACT Program, it is anticipated that current pollution levels will be reduced by up to two megatons as a result of fuel switching and decreased fuel consumption. This program is already helping hundreds of farmers with grants of at least $50,000 for 50% of the cost of new grain dryers or barn heating systems.

Canada is particularly well positioned to sustainably feed a growing global population. This will be achieved by investing in research and innovation, increasing the number of farmers who are adopting beneficial management practices and facilitating their access to clean technologies.