The application intake is now closed.

Applied Research, Pilot Projects and Demonstrations

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on supporting risk reduction efforts and/or advancing improvements within three key areas: Emergency Management, Animal Health and Animal Welfare.

Target Audience

Partners that represent producers and other value chain members, including, for example, commingling yards and feed mills active in advancing animal health and supporting risk reduction efforts

Eligible Projects

  • Validation studies/proof of concept
  • Implementation and testing activities – including testing of new technologies and/or enhanced efficiencies of processes, practices or systems in support of health and biosecurity surveillance, and emergency management systems; new technologies or equipment to facilitate humane handling and care of animals
  • Applied research projects
  • Pilot projects and demonstrations
  • Development of an auditable animal welfare assurance program where no national commodity or code of practice exists
  • Development of animal welfare best practices or industry standards
  • Evaluation of animal welfare best practices or industry standards
  • Disseminating best practices, outcomes and learning derived directly from the applied research projects, pilot projects, validation studies or demonstrations

Examples of Projects

Emergency Management

  • Projects that test or enhance emergency management systems in multiple sectors or commodities based on an established Emergency Management Plan using the Incident Command System
  • Projects that improve the ability and capacity to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond effectively to infectious animal disease, that can impact the broader sector or society at large (e.g., data gathering through surveillance initiatives, applied research projects to investigate solutions to specific projects, or pilots to test)
  • Surveillance projects to gather data from which to benchmark
  • Projects to address improved connectivity of surveillance data for enhance emergency management
  • Projects to expand access to mobile chamber for mass euthanasia to enhance emergency preparedness and response

Animal Health

  • Demonstrations of improved antimicrobial stewardship
  • Projects that enhance or support the implementation of national biosecurity standards through applied research, pilot projects and demonstrations
  • Projects that support animal health, or related public health, pathogen management, biosecurity surveillance systems, and that demonstrate benefit to the sector or society at large

Animal Welfare

  • Implementation of nationally developed animal welfare assurance program, or where no national animal commodity or Code of Practice for the Care and Handling for Farmed Animals (Codes of Practice) exists, the development of an auditable animal welfare program
  • Demonstrate market benefits, risk mitigation or enhanced assurance systems as a direct results of project implementation
  • New technologies or equipment to facilitate humane handling and care of farmed animals
  • Implementation of transportation, handling and housing changes to meet market animal welfare standards or requirements
  • Pilot modification and implement changes to operations to improvement Codes of Practice for the care and handling of farm animals

Project Category Priorities

Projects that address/support:

  • Responsible antimicrobial usage (AMU)
  • Disease and pathogen surveillance, and biosecurity best management practices
  • Early life health (morbidity and mortality)
  • National Codes of Practice requirement (e.g., housing systems) and/or welfare best management practices
  • Areas of high risk (e.g., commingling facilities such as assembly yards and sales barns)
  • Sheep, goat, veal, and alternative livestock (farmed cervids, fox, rabbit and mink)
  • A gap/need in the sector, where training program/materials do not currently exist (e.g., projects that advance animal welfare programs in commodities not being addressed through existing national programs or funding processes)

Projects that provide:

  • Impact and benefit beyond their specific commodity/sector
  • Co-benefits with other Protection and Assurance Partnership Priority Areas – Food Safety and Plant Health
  • Co-benefits with other Partnership Priority Areas – Economic Development and Environmental Stewardship

Projects that have:

  • A clear rationale/impact of the project and
  • A demonstrated knowledge translation and transfer plan

Eligible Activities

  • Activities that are consistent with the eligible projects and examples listed in the Project Category Priorities

Ineligible Activities

  • Costs for services provided to companies not located in Canada/where majority of benefit of services is provided to a business located outside of Ontario

See Terms and Conditions

Education and Outreach, Training and Skills Development

Purpose of Project Category

Projects will focus on supporting activities within three key areas: Emergency Management, Animal Health and Animal Welfare.

Target Audience

Partners that represent producers and other value chain members, including, for example, commingling yards and feed mills active in advancing animal health and supporting risk reduction efforts

Eligible Projects

  • Outreach strategies including for example, the development of education and training materials
  • Skills development and training
  • Needs assessments
  • Planning
  • Knowledge acquisition and knowledge sharing
  • Workshops

Examples of projects

Emergency Management

  • Projects that encourage the adoption of emergency management systems based on the Incident Command System approach used by the Government of Ontario and the Government of Canada
  • Projects that improve the ability and capacity of a specific commodity sector to prepare for, prevent, detect and respond effectively to infectious animal disease that can impact the broader sector or society at large (e.g., development of commodity-specific emergency management training modules for procedures/protocols tailored to the unique needs/risks of the sector)

Animal Health

  • Improving and supporting general awareness, and knowledge of animal health, or related public health, hazards, pathogen management and biosecurity risks
  • Antimicrobial usage education and awareness opportunities, including training and awareness on behavior change associated with antimicrobial stewardship
  • Enhancing or supporting the implementation of national biosecurity standards or national codes of practice through education and awareness
  • Training activities related to pathogen and disease identification and health status
  • Assessment of biosecurity risks and development of plans to mitigate those risks
  • Apiary education materials development supporting expansion of beekeeping in Northern Ontario (Northern Ontario for the purposes of this program is consistent with the definition in the Northern Ontario Agri-Food Strategy).
  • Training program for feed mills to understand electronic prescriptions and to address requirements for proper handling of medicated feeds, in accordance with new regulations

Animal Welfare

  • Developing/conducting a needs assessment or strategy for the creation of education and training materials for sector outreach
    Education and awareness projects aimed at improving or supporting general awareness, knowledge and implementation of, national Codes of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farmed Animals (Codes of Practice) and welfare best practices, such as:
    • new/updated Codes of Practice for the veal and mink sectors
    • new transport regulations
    • modular loading for poultry with potential handling procedure changes
    • improving animal welfare best practices at commingling facilities, such as sales barns and assembly yards
  • Activities related to training or assessment on national Codes of Practice and/or welfare best practices

Project Category Priorities

Projects that address/support:

  • Responsible antimicrobial usage (AMU)
  • Biosecurity best management practices
  • Early life health (morbidity and mortality)
  • National Codes of Practice requirement and/or upcoming market requirements that need sector outreach to encourage uptake (welfare)
  • Areas of high risk (e.g., commingling facilities such as assembly yards and sales barns)
  • The following species: sheep, goat, veal, and alternative livestock (farmed cervids, fox, rabbit and mink)
  • A gap/need in the sector, where training program/materials do not currently exist (e.g., a project to advance animal welfare programs in commodities not being addressed through existing national programs or funding processes)

Projects that provide:

  • Impact and benefit beyond their specific commodity/sector
  • Co-benefits with other Protection and Assurance Partnership Priority Areas - Food Safety and Plant Health
  • Co-benefits with other Partnership Priority Areas - Economic Development and Environmental Stewardship
  • Value to Ontario businesses

Projects that have:

  • A clear rationale/impact of the project
  • A demonstrated knowledge translation and transfer plan

Eligible Activities

  • Activities that are consistent with the eligible projects and examples listed in the Project Category Priorities

Ineligible Activities

  • Obtaining services for companies not located in Canada/where majority of benefit of services is provided to a business located outside of Ontario
  • Purchasing capital and equipment

See Terms and Conditions