U of G pitch competition highlights Ontario’s agri-tech talent, technology

Greenhouse and vertical farming technology came out on top among five entries in this year’s Ontario Agri-Tech Pitch Competition.

Interius Farms won the competition, in which five Ontario-based innovative early-stage start-ups pitched their products to a panel of investors on June 20.

The event was organized by the University of Guelph’s Research Innovation Office in collaboration with the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance.

The competition aimed to unite farmers, academics, agri-tech entrepreneurs and investors to raise awareness about problems worth solving and to showcase investment-worthy companies.

Interius Farms co-founder Jonnie Lawson convinced the judges his company—which combines greenhouse and vertical farming technology to grow fresh, sustainable produce—had the greatest potential impact. His entry took home the $10,000 best in class prize.

“The win goes a long way towards projects on the horizon—being able to launch pilot projects and execute on them,” said Lawson after the event. “It’s really important for us to expand our network and especially get tapped in with the University of Guelph. I’ve already made a lot of good connections today.

“One message to send out to the world is we definitely need more early-stage investment in Canada, particularly for ag-tech sustainability. It’s really tight in terms of dollars out there, so getting that exposure is really important.”

"It’s always a great day when we have entrepreneurs interacting with our campus, especially those of this calibre,” said Tyler Zemlak, manager of innovation strategy in the Research Innovation Office. “Everyone did an outstanding job, making the decision to pick a winner very challenging."

Beck’s Broth was voted People’s Choice by audience members and received a $2,500 prize. The company sells powdered bone broth that consumers mix with water to make “bone broth lattes” or “hot chocolate,” with 15 grams of protein per serving.

Company founder and CEO Beckie Prime and Domenique Mastronardi, chief operating officer and “food sustainability engineer,” say they plan to launch a third product in the coming months and to start exporting by year-end.

Three other competitors received $1,000 finalist awards, as follows:

• Dr. Shari Van De Pol, founder and CEO of CATTLEytics: “LinkedIn for dairy cows” technology that provides data and metrics to dairy farms.
• Sidhanth Pereira, founder and CEO of EarthOne: “FitBit for plants” that collects data from houseplants or vegetables.
• Dr. Cody Kupferschmidt, founder and CEO of Erode AI: generative artificial intelligence that produces accurate local forecasts for the agricultural sector.

A recording of the pitch competition is available on the Research Innovaiton Office's YouTube channel.

Domenique Mastronardi Domenique Mastronardi, COO at Beck’s Broth, is a University of Guelph engineering graduate who always had an interest in nutrition. In the third year of her undergraduate degree, she created a highly nutritious upcycled waffle, called Happy Waffle, which spawned a business and was the basis for her subsequent master’s degree. Mastronardi received a Highly Qualified Personnel scholarship, jointly funded by the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance and Food from Thought. The scholarship supports the development of highly skilled graduates who can meet the changing demands of the agri-food sector. Mastronardi says the scholarship allowed her to grow her business and continue her education at the same time.  “I gained a lot of skills in sustainable food product development and low-energy food product development, both of which transfer really well to my role now, which is operations and finance. “I learned how to run a really lean business and a low-energy-consuming business, and that’s what drives good profits at such an early stage for our company.”

The pitch competition is an extension of the well-known Gryphon’s LAAIR Program funded through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance, a collaboration between the Government of Ontario and the University of Guelph.

The Research Innovation Office thanks its sponsors: the RHA Partners / 519 Growth Fund; the John F. Wood Centre; and the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance.