Access to financing as a new farmer, particularly in the early years of business or during moments of considerable change like farm transition or development, can be difficult. The good news is that there are numerous grants available in Canada for farmers who are starting new, and we’ve got a list of some grants that will help you to get started.
Grants are offered for various purposes, including trade show attendance, infrastructure, water management, food safety, equipment upgrades, recruiting young people, and riparian restoration. Each award will have its qualifying requirements, the application process, and a cost-sharing plan.
National Farm Leadership Program by Farm Management Canada
The National Farm Leadership Program teaches you how to perform at your best when it matters most. Our programme is designed to fit into farmers’ busy schedules and assist them in identifying essential development areas that will most impact their personal and professional lives. Not only is leadership beneficial to the company, but it is also beneficial to the leader’s and others’ well-being.
Expenses that are allowable
- Compare your leadership effectiveness to a worldwide standard.
- Determine which areas of development will have the greatest influence on your company.
- Gain the confidence to start a dialogue about a subject that has been bothering you for a long time.
- While working in your firm, you can improve your talents in real-time.
- Improve your goal-setting and decision-making skills.
- Improve your performance while also empowering others.
- Reduce stress and anxiety, and get more done on the things that matter.
- Connect with other professionals to share ideas and expand your network of support.
Value: Up to $2500 cost-share funding for farmers
Contact
- Contact Name: Farm Management Canada
Farm Technology Program
The Farm Technology Program fosters the implementation of best management practices in farm security and supports the introduction of novel technology that reduces agricultural waste and improves farm efficiency. This programme offers cash incentives for novel technologies already commercially accessible and tested in Alberta. The programme looks for proven technology that hasn’t been extensively adopted within an applicant’s farm-type to qualify for financing.
Eligible applicants
The candidate must be a Primary Producer to be considered for this programme:
- operating in Alberta and is responsible for the cost of inputs for crops or livestock that produce at least $25,000 in farm commodities per year. This excludes a landlord whose sole interest in the crop or livestock is land ownership.
- Has either a current Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) Certificate or letter of completion from an EFP technician; or who is currently working on an EFP and will receive an EFP certificate or letter of completion from an EFP technician before the end of the Project Term.
Expenses that are allowable
Electronic sensors, data collecting and storage devices, livestock ID readers, GPS equipment trackers, and remote monitors are all examples of qualifying expenses.
Contact
- Contact Name: Farm Technology Program
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Agricultural Climate Solutions – On-Farm Climate Action Fund
The On-Farm Climate Action Fund is a programme designed to assist farmers in combating climate change. The Fund is part of the Government of Canada’s Agricultural Climate Solutions effort, which is overseen by Natural Resources Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and falls under the $4 billion Natural Climate Solutions Fund. From 2021 to 2024, the Fund will invest $200 million in the adoption of beneficial management methods in the three categories mentioned in order to store carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions directly on farms.
Value: $200 million
Allowable expenses
The On-Farm Climate Action Fund’s goal is to help farmers adopt beneficial management methods that store carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, focusing on Cover crops, rotational grazing, and nitrogen management.
Check more information about Energy Efficiency Grants
Contact
- Contact Name: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
- Phone Number: 1-877-246-4682
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
For more information, click here
Farm Water Supply
The Farm Water Supply Program splits the cost of improving a producer’s on-farm water supply management due to a Long-Term Water Management Plan (LTWMP). These expenditures are covered by the Farm Water Supply Program’s Standard and Special Incentive projects, which are detailed in the Farm Water Supply Program Funding List. Grants are offered on a first-come, first-served basis for various water sourcing, conservation, and protection initiatives specified in the producer’s approved LTWMP and comply with the program’s Terms and Conditions.
Eligible applicants
Producers, businesses, and not-for-profit organizations in Alberta with an active agricultural company and at least $10,000 in farm commodities production income are eligible. An eligible on-farm water project can be built on private, rented, or certain types of Crown land with the landowner’s previous written agreement. The land on which a project is completed must be in Alberta and be actively farmed by the individual applying for the award at the time of completion.
Value
The program offers grants to pay Eligible Costs for approved Projects on a cost-shared basis up to a maximum of $64,000 per Applicant for the Program Term.
Contact
- Contact Name: Ag-Info Centre
- Phone Number: 310-FARM (3276)
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Dairy Farm Investment Program
The Dairy Farm Investment Program is a $250 million five-year programme (starting in 2017-2018) to help Canadian cow’s milk producers boost output by upgrading existing equipment. Its goal is to help dairy farmers adjust to the expected effects of the Canada–EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
Eligible applicants
Applicants must meet the following criteria to be considered:
- In Canada, legal entities are permitted to enter into legally binding agreements.
- Must be licenced cow’s milk producers in Canada.
- Must have a current dairy licence with a production quota registered with a provincial milk marketing authority.
Applicants not accepted in Phase 1 must reapply if they want their proposal to be evaluated in Phase 2.
Contact
- Contact Name: Government of Canada
- Phone Number: 1-877-246-4682 (toll-free)
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Poultry and Egg On-Farm Investment Program
The Poultry and Egg On-Farm Investment Program (PEFIP) intends to assist supply-managed poultry and egg producers in adapting to market changes brought on by the Trans-Pacific Partnership Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement (CPTPP). The initiative encourages on-farm investments in the following areas:
- Increasing productivity or efficiency
- increasing food safety and biosecurity on farms
- reacting to customer desires while enhancing environmental sustainability (improving animal welfare, adopting alternative housing systems, transitioning to organic production, etc.)
Date of the deadline
Project applications must be received by March 31, 2030, after the program’s ninth year.
Contact
- Phone Number: 1-877-246-4682
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Financial Support for Aspiring Farmers
Financial Assistance for Aspiring Farmers was created to assist young farmers in establishing themselves on a farm or starting a new enterprise.
Eligible applicants
If you match the following conditions, your operation may be eligible for our Financial Support Program for Aspiring Farmers:
- Are residents of Québec;
- Are at least 18 but not yet 40 years old;
- Have some formal education;
- Hold a minimum of 20% of the company’s stock;
- At least one year of relevant agricultural experience is required;
- Have a business venture that has the potential to be profitable.
Contact
- Contact Name: La Financière agricole du Québec
- Phone Number: 1-800-749-3646
For more info, click here
Farm Adaptation Innovator Program
The Farm Adaptation Innovator Program (FAIP) aims to increase adaptive capacity and promote the adoption of effective farm practices in order to assist in alleviating climate change consequences.
Allowable expenses
Applied research, pilots, demonstrations, and adoption facilitation are among the project types supported by the programme. Projects in four different farm practice categories are eligible for funding:
- Management of Soil and Crops (includes horticulture, orchards, viticulture, seeded forage and forage grown for seed)
- Pasture, Livestock, and Range Management (includes livestock water)
- Farm and business management, as well as water management
Contact
- Contact Name: Climate Action Initiative
- Phone Number: 1-888-221-7141
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
For more information, click here
Capital Support for Aspiring Farmers
Capital Support for Aspiring Farmers seeks to relieve the cash flow burden on your business throughout the transition or start-up phase. This financial solution allows you to defer capital payments for up to five years.
Eligible applicants
If you match the following conditions, your operation may be eligible for our Capital Support for Aspiring Farmers product:
- Are residents of Québec;
- Are at least 18 but not yet 40 years old;
- Hold a minimum of 20% of the company’s stock;
- At least one year of relevant agricultural experience is required;
- Have a business venture that has the potential to be profitable.
Contact
- Contact Name: La Financière agricole du Québec
- Phone Number: 1-800-749-3646
Farm Stewardship Program
The Farm Stewardship Program (FSP) provides financial assistance to Saskatchewan farmers who want to use beneficial management practices (BMPs) in three areas: water, climate change, and biodiversity.
Eligible applicants
Applicants must meet the following requirements to be considered:
- Become a Saskatchewan agricultural producer (person, partnership, or corporation) or a member of a Saskatchewan First Nations Band.
- You must be at least 18 years old.
- File income tax returns in Saskatchewan proving a minimum of $50,000 in gross agricultural income in the year of application or the year before.
- A Saskatchewan Premises Identification (PID) number is required for producers who own, lease or rent the property where livestock and poultry are grown, bred, kept, raised, shown, assembled, or disposed of.
Contact
- Contact Name: Ministry of Agriculture, Programs Branch
- Phone Number: 1-866-457-2377
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Farm Energy and Agri-Processing Program (FEAP) by Alberta Agriculture and Forestry
Producers who upgrade components of their grain dryers to high-efficiency versions, either as part of a new dryer or when retrofitting components of an existing dryer, will benefit from the Farm Energy and Agri-Processors (FEAP) programme.
Allowable expenses
The following are some examples of eligible retrofits:
- hopper covers
- automatic moisture controls
- new high-efficiency burners PTO
- electric motor conversion
- insulated plenums exhaust air recirculation systems
- secondary heat exchangers
- gravity-fill roofs that replace motorized levelling augers
Contact
- Contact Name: Government of Alberta
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Farm Health and Safety Producer Grant Program
The Farm Health and Safety Producer Grant Program assists employers in defraying some of the costs associated with meeting new OHS regulations in their operations.
Eligible Applicants- Farmers and ranchers
Contact
- Contact Name: Occupational Health and Safety Contact Centre
- Phone Number: 1-866-415-8690
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
To wrap up:
Canadian farm grants are financial assistance programmes available in Canada for farmers. Most significantly, you must recognize that your farm is a business if you are looking for Canadian farm grants. Other agricultural business grant programmes, as well as government business loans, may be available. Don’t overlook the several funding opportunities accessible to you, including farm grants, farm loans, and farm subsidies.
Just wonder if there was finance so so you could increase your herd of beef cows