About the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance

• Centralized and diverse agri-food expertise attracts, inspires and benefits students.
• Alliance-funded research integrates student development and learning.
• Hands-on veterinary, agricultural and laboratory training develops Ontario’s future workforce and promotes the agri-food sector. 

• The Alliance supports and attracts world-class expertise in agricultural, veterinary and food science.
• Researchers can apply for operating funds through a competitive research program.
• Researchers also benefit from Alliance-funded technicians and staff members who analyze samples, take care of animals, manage facilities, perform procedures, manage data, and more. 

• Alliance funding helps build and maintain capacity in laboratory testing and analysis, ensuring the scientific personnel at the Animal Health Laboratory and Agriculture and Food Laboratory are prepared to respond to evolving supply chain and food safety challenges. 

• Alliance funding helps build teams of trained technical staff to facilitate the success of research.
• Technicians are essential partners with skills in plant breeding, animal care, data management and more. 

• Research program directors are U of G faculty members who help to ensure that Alliance research meets priorities set by the Government of Ontario.
• As leaders in their fields, they forge relationships within the University and outside it.
• See the list of research program directors and their priority areas. 

• Staff on the University of Guelph Office of Research, Agri-Food Partnership team manage the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance. 

Contact the Agri-Food Partnership Team

• A province-wide network of research and outreach hubs connects industry partners, the Government of Ontario and the University of Guelph to ensure Ontario producers and consumers benefit from the promise of research.
• Ontario’s agri-food research centres are owned by the Agricultural Research and Innovation Ontario (ARIO), an agency of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness (OMAFA), and managed by the University of Guelph through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance. 

• The Alliance supports select on-campus facilities that contribute to Ontario's agri-food research sector. 

Learn more about Alliance-supported on-campus facilities. 

• Research Program: The Alliance funds priority-driven research, training of highly qualified personnel, and knowledge mobilization programs designed to meet the needs of Ontario's agri-food sectors and rural communities. Visit the funding programs section of our website to learn more about our programming. 
• Knowledge Translation and Transfer Services and Resources: The Alliance is committed to “getting science off the shelf” and provides services and resources for the research community. View KTT Services and Resources.  

• The Alliance provides funding for the Ontario Veterinary College's Health Sciences Centre, advanced clinical training, research and externships for students and the OVC's Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses. Learn more by visiting the Veterinary Capacity Program page. 

• The AFL provides high quality, special purpose laboratory services in support of Ontario's agriculture and food sectors and rural communities.

• The AHL is a full-service veterinary diagnostic laboratory that supports provincial animal disease diagnosis and surveillance.

• The Regulatory Training Program supports the development of critical, non-discretionary training, education and certification for regulatory requirements under provincial legislation. It also supports the digital delivery of eLearning courses for food safety, traceability and farm business management.