Mobile energy efficient tissue culture laboratory for northern agriculture development and crop improvements

Food production and agriculture in Canada’s far North is met with many challenges. Short growing seasons, poor soil, extreme weather all impact the ability to effectively and efficiently produce food locally. In addition, Northern communities are at the end of a South to North supply chain, suspectable to multiple disruptions, both physical and economic. Our mobile lab allows for exponential plant cloning through sustainable processes. It will provide access to big agriculture technology for farmers and food producers of all sizes for rural and remote communities, minimizing the impacts of supply chain disruption, producing resilient and hearty plants, and enable food sovereignty amidst times of crisis.
The partners, OUTFRNT and Cold Acres, will benefit through the commercialization and deployment of the lab. This initial research will allow for the deployment of a live feasibility pilot as this project is a first in Canada innovation (mobilization of micropropagation).

Faculty Supervisor:

Pankaj Bhowmik;Zheng Liu;Michael Deyholos

Student:

Dustin MacLean;Brian McFadden

Partner:

ColdAcre

Discipline:

Biology

Sector:

Other

University:

University of British Columbia Okanagan