Before you apply

Sources of funding

Your financial contributions must be secured before submitting an application to be considered by the program.

You must clearly show all sources of funding for the project, including your contributions and/or partner contributions:

• other federal government departments
• provincial/territorial governments
• municipal administrations
• industry and/or partners such as:
  • industry associations and networks
  • businesses
  • academia
  • Indigenous groups

How we assess your application

Projects with the greatest potential for benefits will be given priority for funding. You must provide enough detail for AAFC to assess your application. When you describe your initiatives and project activities, you should clearly outline the important points (who, what, where, when, why, and how) of what you are trying to achieve.

Your application will be assessed against the following criteria, as applicable:

• Alignment with program objectives and priorities

  • The degree to which your project will deliver intended benefits such as:

    increasing food distribution infrastructure

    You must show how your project will result in establishing or expanding a food hub, including associated transportation, warehousing, and logistics.

    enhancing competition and increasing access to local food

    You must show how your project will support affordability of food and enhanced competition where gaps exist, measured by the number of new and returning customers (individuals, institutions, and small and medium-sized businesses).

    strengthening supply chains

    You must show how your project will sustainably establish and/or grow a diverse supplier and customer network and how it will leverage technology to optimize inventory management, mitigate disruptions, and foster collaboration.

    supporting a resilient food supply

    You must show that you can create or expand distribution systems to:

    • keep money circulating locally
    • reduce exposure to global volatility
    • maintain distribution in times of crisis

    Where possible, you should demonstrate how the proposal will address food waste and food rescue.

    Where applicable, you should demonstrate the degree to which your project serves a priority population or underserved geographic region.

• Your ability to manage the project and achieve sustainable results
  • The extent to which you have or have access to the necessary technical, financial, and managerial capability and capacity to complete the project on time and on budget
  • Your capacity to repay a repayable contribution (as applicable)
  • Your level of project readiness
  • Your ability to continue to operate without continued support from this program
• Quality and completeness of your application
  • The proposed activities are eligible, reasonable, and required to meet program objectives
  • The project is feasible and sustainable in the long term
  • The project budget is supported by quotations
• Alignment with existing Government Canada policies and priorities, where appropriate
  • The extent to which your project aligns with the National Food Security Strategy
  • The extent to which you've made reasonable effort to prioritize Canadian materials and source any project-related materials and/or services from Canadian businesses, where feasible. For more information, refer to the Buy Canadian Policy
  • How your project may impact underrepresented or marginalized groups and/or underserved geographic areas
  • Your plan to address food waste, in support of The Food Policy for Canada
  • The extent to which your project enhances the capacity of local and regional food supply chains to serve institutional markets, including opportunities created through the National Food and Beverage Procurement Strategy and National School Food Program and other public procurement initiatives that prioritize Canadian food

Please note that even if a project meets all eligibility criteria, the submission of an application creates no obligation on the part of the Minister or of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada officials to provide funding for the proposed project. The Minister retains discretion to determine, based on other public policy and public interest considerations, whether an application that meets the criteria identified in the guide will ultimately receive funding.

Stacking provisions

Total government funding (inclusive of federal government departments, agencies, crown corporations, provincial/territorial governments, and municipal administrations) cannot exceed 85% of total project funding.

For Indigenous applicants, total government funding cannot exceed 100% of eligible costs.

Infrastructure/equipment retention

If your project is approved for funding, the contribution agreement will contain a clause confirming that ownership of eligible equipment must be maintained for a minimum of 2 years after the project completion date.

Considerations

M-30 Act (Quebec organizations only)

The Province of Quebec's M-30 legislation may apply to Quebec-based applicants only. It is the Act Respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif (R.S.Q., c. M-30).

It is the responsibility of all Quebec-based organizations to demonstrate their compliance with the Act by obtaining the required confirmation (whether your organization is subject to the M-30 Act) and authorization (approval of the funding agreement if subject to M-30) from the Government of Quebec, and sharing a copy of that authorization with AAFC before they enter into a funding agreement.

More information on the Act is available online or by contacting the Ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'Alimentation (MAPAQ) at dpci@mapaq.gouv.qc.ca.