September 3, 2026
https://vegconomist.com/agriculture-agribusiness/canada-directs-2-2m-ai-fungicide-timing-on-farm-grain-inventory/
Protein Industries Canada is putting up to $2.2 million into two artificial intelligence projects targeting decisions made at the farm level in Western Canada, one covering fungicide timing in pulse crops and the other covering how growers measure grain sitting in storage. Combined project value across both is $4.9 million, with the industry partners funding the remainder.
Spraying only when the model says so
The first project is led by TerraVision360, the new public-facing brand of Toronto-based Ukko Agro, alongside Metos Canada and Rocky Mountain Equipment. The partners will build a tool that forecasts Ascochyta blight risk at both regional and individual-field level by pairing crop and disease data with localized weather information, giving growers a basis for deciding when to scout and when to spray.
Ukko Agro previously worked with Protein Industries Canada on a $2.6 million project in December 2023 with Hawk’s Agro and Three Farmers, building disease prediction for lentils on its ForeSite platform.
“Every fungicide pass a grower doesn’t need to make is money back in their pocket. This project is about giving growers of key pulse crops the confidence to spray only when it matters, and to spray it right when they do, removing the guesswork so they get a high-ROI outcome every time, in any situation, not just the ideal one,” said TerraVision360 CEO Avi Bhargava.
Drone scans replace bin climbing
The second project pairs Saskatoon-based Super GeoAI Technology Inc., founded in 2020, with Southview Farms to build a drone and LiDAR system that measures grain volumes in on-farm bins. The system is designed to cut the need for manual bin climbing and to generate audit-ready documentation that can travel with the grain through the value chain.
Founder and CEO Dr. Weiping Zeng said, “Grain inventory measurement and management continue to rely heavily on manual processes that can be time-consuming, labour-intensive and potentially hazardous.
“Through this project, we are integrating AI, LiDAR, drone technology and 3D digital twins to make grain inventory measurement safer, faster and more accurate, while providing producers with actionable insights for better inventory management and operational decision-making.”
Cluster funding moves to the farm gate
Protein Industries Canada’s AI stream is funded through the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy. The organization allocated $8 million to AI projects in June 2025 alongside $7 million for genomics work, and its most recent AI commitment before these two was $607,000 for a fermentation monitoring platform with Crush Dynamics and Atomic47 Labs, which sat firmly at the processing end. Both new projects sit upstream of that, at the field and the bin, and feed into the cluster’s stated target of building Canada’s plant-based food, feed and ingredient sector into a $25 billion industry.
“AI is becoming a foundational tool for the future of agriculture, and Canada has an opportunity to lead by turning world-class innovation into solutions that work on farms and in the field, and further up the value-chain,” said Protein Industries Canada CEO Tyler Groeneveld.