Cultivating a Low-Carbon Future for Canada’s Food Systems.

We are reducing the carbon footprint of food production while strengthening the resiliency, sustainability, and economic viability of Canada’s agricultural sector.

Climate change is putting Canada’s agriculture and food systems under growing strain, but genomics now gives us the power to reduce emissions, strengthen resilience, and sustain productivity simultaneously.

To realize this opportunity, Canada needs coordinated, large-scale genomic innovation that connects data, research, and real-world adoption across the country.

The Climate-Smart Agriculture and Food Systems Initiative is the national solution: we are building focused campaigns that bring together research teams from across the country to turn genomics into practical, on-the-ground solutions for producers, industry, and policymakers. By aligning existing capacities into a coherent portfolio, we are ensuring Canada’s food systems remain competitive and resilient in a changing climate.

Mission At A Glance

$30M

NATIONAL INVESTMENT

Funding a coordinated approach to climate-smart agriculture across Canada

Projects operating across regions

Research teams working in real production environments across the country.

National data coordination hub

Connecting data across projects to support consistent analysis and use.

Designed for on-farm adoption

Solutions developed for use by producers, industry and policymakers.

This mission focuses on shifting the entire agri-food system toward sustainability through integrated solutions.

Resilient Crop Development

Investing in research to develop crop varieties that thrive under climate stress while requiring fewer inputs like water and fertilizer.

CLivestock Emission Reduction

Utilizing genomic insights to breed livestock with lower methane emissions and improved feed efficiency.

Soil Health and Biodiversity

Harnessing genomics to understand and improve soil microbiomes, ensuring long-term land productivity and carbon sequestration.

Sustainable Supply Chains

Leveraging data to reduce agri-food waste and improve food safety, ensuring a more efficient path from farm to table.

National Strategy. Regional Excellence.

We leverage the unique expertise and provincial partnerships of our regional Genome Centres to connect distributed efforts into a collective national advantage. This strategic orchestration ensures that national missions are informed by regional needs, allowing us to scale local innovations, like climate-resilient wheat or sustainable aquaculture, into national solutions.

Transforming Genomic Data into Economic Advantage.

Genomic innovation is the essential infrastructure for Canada’s transition to a more sustainable, diversified economy.

By focusing on adoption, not just invention, we help Canadian companies integrate genomic tools into real operations, boosting productivity and reducing costs.

Our mission-driven approach accelerates impact by building regulatory readiness and market uptake into the design of every project from the outset.

Missions in Action: Strengthening Food Security.

Current Project

Community driven microbe sequencing and naming in Pictou Landing First Nation

Competition: Indigenous Genomics Training and Capacity Program

Project Leads: Meredith Karcz (Confederacy of Mainland Mi’kmaq), Casey Hubert (University of Calgary), James Kho (Dalhousie University)

Genome Centre(s): Genome Atlantic

Current Project

Indigenous-Led Genomics Curriculum for One Health and Climate Resilience in the North

Competition: Indigenous Genomics Training and Capacity Program

Project Leads: Math’ieya Alatini (One Yukon Coalition)

Genome Centre(s): Genome British Columbia

Current Project

Pan-Canadian Human Genome Library for Canadian Precision Health Initiative

Competition: CPHI Pillar 1: Generating population-level genomic data

Project Leads: Guillaume Bourque (McGill University) and Ma’n Zawati (McGill University)

A National Coalition for Health Innovation.

Mission success depends on identifying "fellow travelers" and building connection points across the entire ecosystem.

Strategic Partners

Mission Control: Join the Bio-Revolution.

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Crop Resilience

Livestock Sustainability

Soil Health

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PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES

Cultivating a Low-Carbon Future for Canada’s Food Systems.

Climate change is putting Canada’s agriculture and food systems under growing strain, but genomics now gives us the power to reduce emissions, strengthen resilience, and sustain productivity simultaneously.