Research Grants

We provide seed funding for interdisciplinary research or technology development that help accelerate solutions to sustainable food challenges. Research outcomes should impact primarily Canadians, but also deliver key learnings towards issues of global concern.

SEEDING FOOD INNOVATION GRANTS 2020

Program Overview

Goal:

To provide seed funding for innovative transdisciplinary research whose goal is to safely increase the production of nutritious food and other agricultural products, that will feed the growing population in ways that are environmentally, economically as well as culturally sustainable.

Important Dates:

Program opens: Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Program Information Webinars: Wednesday, February 19, 2020 at 12pm ET Thursday, February 20, 2020 at 2pm ET Download Recording (MP4)
Letter of Intent (LOI) Deadline: Delayed Until Further Notice
Proposal Deadline: Delayed Until Further Notice
Award Announcement: Delayed Until Further Notice

Funding Guidelines:

A maximum of $250,000 over up to two years per project.

Download and review the Funding Guidelines document before you submit your application to ensure you understand the program’s requirements and to increase your chance of submitting a successful proposal.

Download Funding Guidelines (PDF)

Applicant Eligibility:

Eligible Principal Applicants must be:

  • at or above the level of Postdoctoral researcher OR have an Administrative Supervisor that has a permanent post at a recognised Canadian post-secondary institution
  • be affiliated with a Canada Revenue Agency-qualified donee institution located in Canada
  • working in Canada at least 30% of the time

Project Eligibility:

  • Projects need to be focused on the safe and sustainable intensification of the food production system (e.g. Sustainable Agriculture or Aquaculture; Soil Microbiome; Food Safety)
  • Projects must demonstrate meaningful research partnerships and/or collaborations, with a minimum of 1 and a maximum of 10 additional collaborators, beyond the Principal Applicant.
  • Potential partnerships might include different academic institutions/schools; not-for-profit organizations; public and private organizations or any combination of these.

Program Information Webinar:

We will hold two webinars to provide further details on the program and answer any questions. However, if you have a question specific to your project (e.g. scope), we encourage you to contact us. We welcome inquiries about our funding at Food.Innovation@Weston.ca

Wednesday, February 19, 2020 at 12:00pm ET Thursday, February 20, 2020 at 2:00pm ET

Application Process:

There are two stages in the application process:

  1. Letter of Intent (LOI)
  2. Proposal

An application requires the submission of the online Letter of Intent which will be reviewed by our scientific review committee. Following evaluation, applications that are deemed to be high potential projects will be invited to submit a Proposal. Only ~15% of LOIs are invited to the Proposal phase, so that applicants and reviewers spend their time on Proposals that have an excellent chance of being funded.