AgriScience Program – Projects: 2. Eligibility

2. Eligibility

Check if you meet the criteria to apply.

Eligibility checklist - Applicants

You must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible.

    • For-profit
    • Not-for-profit
    • Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, Métis):
      • community and/or government
      • association
      • not-for-profit organization
      • for-profit organization

  • Additional options are available for Indigenous applicants such as a copy of:

    • a Band Council Resolution
    • a Tribal Council Resolution
    • a Director's Resolution
    • another legal document that states that they are a legal entity

  • For organizations incorporated within the last 2 years, please contact the program to discuss alternative requirements

You need to meet all the eligibility criteria to qualify for the program. Learn more before you apply.

Ineligible applicants

Ineligible applicants include:

  • Sole proprietorships
  • Academic institutions
    • Academic institutions cannot apply directly for funding; however, they are encouraged to work with industry partners to develop a collaborative project application

Eligible activities

On the Innovation Continuum, eligible activities range from applied research and development to technology and knowledge transfer. 

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The AgriScience Program helps you move your activities from Discovery Science to Near Market:

  1. Research (knowledge creation)
  2. Development (pre-commercialization/pre-adoption/technology transfer phrase)
  3. Technology transfer (commercialization/adoption phase)

You can use the Technology readiness levels (Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada) (TRL) scale to help you identify your project's beginning and ending development stages. The program typically funds projects from levels 4 to 7 (proof of concept to prototype).

Eligibility checklist — Projects

Your project must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible.

Climate change and environment
  • Research that addresses climate change and environmental sustainability to help the sector contribute to the Government of Canada's 2030 and 2050 emissions targets
  • Activities in this area can focus on greenhouse gas emissions reduction or carbon sequestration, climate change adaptation, soil health, water quality, air quality, biodiversity, and reduction of plastics in agriculture
Economic growth and development
  • Research that supports economic growth by creating conditions for Canadian businesses to meet evolving challenges of the interconnected domestic and global marketplace
  • Activities in this area can focus on developing emerging technologies that address issues such as labour challenges, increasing productivity, improving input use efficiency, supporting alternative production systems and increasing value-added domestic and export sales of agriculture, food and agri-based industrial products.
Sector resilience and societal challenges
  • Research that enhances resiliency to anticipate, mitigate, and respond to risks, and build public trust
  • Activities in this area can focus on antimicrobial resistance, animal health and welfare, plant health, food security, biological alternatives to chemical inputs and the use of artificial intelligence and big data in agriculture

Note: Proposals with no or limited environmental research investment will be deemed a low priority.

You need to meet all the eligibility criteria to qualify for the program. Learn more before you apply.

Indigenous knowledge and science priorities

Activities in support of Indigenous groups (First Nation, Métis or Inuit) to conduct research and share new and traditional scientific knowledge will be considered eligible. AAFC will support Indigenous knowledge systems and scientists in a wide range of research areas, including:

  • livestock and crop management systems and techniques
  • management of agricultural ecosystems, including permaculture, food forests and companion planting
  • traditional harvesting of crops and livestock
  • knowledge of cultivation and stewardship techniques locally adapted to ecosystems

Indigenous applicants are strongly encouraged to reach out to the Indigenous Science Liaison Office at aafc.ISLO-BLSA.aac@agr.gc.ca before they apply.

Areas of research with funding restrictions

There are funding restrictions on the following areas of research. For more information, please contact the program.

Health claims and human clinical trials

A food health claim is any label or advertisement that suggests a relationship between a food or an ingredient and a person's health.

AAFC will only consider funding research projects that include human clinical trials used to support disease risk reduction and therapeutic health claims for which stakeholders will seek to obtain a Health Canada pre-market approval or recognition of the validity of the health claim.

In assessing project proposals, AAFC (and Health Canada, where appropriate) will evaluate that you've demonstrated a body of evidence that is broadly supportive of the claim and that the literature review and human clinical trial design and proposed conduct are deemed to be methodologically robust enough to meet Health Canada standards.

Variety development

Variety development is an eligible activity under the program where the research aligns with at least one of the 3 priority areas. However, AAFC will prioritize activities focused on early-stage development work, which is typically characterized by the development of new traits, and involves genome development and plant breeding.

Later stage work continues to be eligible but will be of lower priority. Later stage work is typically characterized by the incremental development of traits and often includes the delivery of finished varieties over the project duration.

Pest and disease surveillance

Activities related to pest and disease surveillance will only be considered eligible if they are required as part of a broader research activity. Regular and routine monitoring for pests and diseases are not eligible activities. You must clearly explain how any surveillance and monitoring data captured is novel and supports the desired impact of the research activity.

Eligible costs

To be considered eligible, your costs must:

  • be included in the approved application budget
  • be related to the approved work plan
  • fall within the approved work plan timeframe

There are 5 eligible cost categories:

  • Salaries and benefits
  • Contracted services
  • Travel
  • Capital expenditures
  • Other direct project costs

For projects under a contribution agreement, administrative costs will be calculated automatically at a flat rate of 10% based on the total activity costs in the budget, excluding all capital expenditures.

For more information about eligible costs, refer to Eligible cost categories (Complete the application and apply).

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