Boosting Canada’s agricultural productivity through investment and innovation

Canada’s agricultural sector stands at a pivotal moment, as global food demand intensifies, profit margins tighten and climate pressures mount. Ag tech innovation offers a powerful solution, but research alone isn’t enough. We must accelerate commercialization of these technologies and create an investment environment that attracts venture capital. Innovation, boldness and ambition are urgently needed.

Despite our reputation as a global leader in food production, Canada lags international peers in ag tech investment. Indeed, the country captured less than 2% of global venture capital ag tech deal values in 2024 compared with 45.3% for the United States. U.S. venture capital ag tech deals that year outvalued their Canadian counterparts by a ratio of 23 to 1. This imbalance is reflected in the relative importance of U.S. and Canadian agriculture and food exports, with the U.S. ranking 1st globally (accounting for more than 9% of global exports), and Canada ranking 8th (capturing less than 4% of global exports). We remain an important linchpin in the global food system, relative to our size. But we could be doing better.

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