By Cate Willis
A University of Guelph initiative will help to position Ontario’s agriculture sector as a leader by fostering stronger collaboration between academia, industry, and government.
Feeding the Future is a four-phase project that seeks to build a sustainable and innovative agri-food sector in Ontario. The initiative focuses on identifying challenges and addressing opportunities within the agricultural sector through collaboration and informed decision-making.
“The goal of Feeding the Future is to help make Ontario's agriculture sector the best in the world by enhancing collaboration between academia, industry and government,” says Dr. Rene Van Acker, vice-president, research and innovation (acting president and vice-chancellor). “We’re trying to build on existing synergies between these groups to drive the province's agricultural industry forward.”
Feeding the Future was launched this year in alignment with the Ontario Agricultural College’s 150th anniversary.
Van Acker says it provided an opportunity to reflect on the Ontario Agricultural College’s past achievements and establish clear initiatives and priorities for the future in a strategic and forward-thinking way.
The project will continue into early 2025.
Currently, the Feeding the Future team is conducting a province-wide listening tour to gather feedback from stakeholders in the agricultural sector through interviews, focus groups, and surveys to better understand their unique challenges.
After collecting the data, their team will synthesize findings, identify key challenges and opportunities, form innovation teams to develop targeted solutions and gather feedback to refine solutions as needed.
Van Acker says that addressing these issues will require diverse perspectives to identify problems and design effective solutions.
“This process will involve significant engagement with stakeholders and commodity groups to ensure that multiple viewpoints are considered,” he says. “Validation and consensus from various sectors – including industry, academia, and government – will be essential before we prioritize the issues to address.
“Overall, our approach will remain human-centred and inclusive throughout the project.”