Funding Options for Ontario Agricultural and Agri-Food Businesses

IMPORTANT, PLEASE NOTE:

• Webinar capacity will be given to business owners. Professional advisors are kindly asked to have their business owner (client) register;
• Please use your company email to register, and;
• Whitelist @mentorworks.ca in your email client (ie. Microsoft Outlook) and check your Junk Mail folder in order to avoid missing any important announcements regarding the event.

Funding resources are available for small businesses in the agricultural and agri-food sector from both the provincial and federal levels of government. The challenge is how to find and take advantage of what is out there. There is a plethora of funding opportunities directly targeted at the food industry, in addition to more general funding programs available to most established Canadian businesses.

Bernadeen McLeod is the principal behind Mentor Works. With considerable expertise in government funding, both on a federal and provincial level, she has secured grant funding as well as low interest loans for small-medium size business owners in Southern Ontario.

Bernadeen has compiled the best organizational tools and resources to research government funding options to serve small businesses. Through her presentation, she will share her knowledge with you.

In her presentation, Bernadeen will cover financing trends, the different types of government resources, how to find them, and how to harness these opportunities to fund your agri-business.

You will learn how to take the mystery out of how funding mechanisms work, the on-line application process, eligibility factors, the funding cycle, and more. You will also learn what the experts know about government funding and business support resources and how to keep it simple.

Mentor Works would like to invite you to an industry specific government grants and loans webinar, tailored to the food industry in Ontario. This webinar will cover the new programs released over the course of the last several months and company’s best funding options for 2014 and beyond.

Programs covered include the $3 billion, 5-year initiative known as Growing Forward 2, the new Local Food Fund program, and more. This webinar will benefit any food company in Ontario interested in funding for:

• Product/Tech Development;
• Commercialization;
• Marketing and Promotions;
• Collaborations;
• Capacity Building Projects;
• Capital Equipment;
• Technology Adoption;
• Food Safety/Certifications;
• Hiring;
• Training.

Complimentary for Businesses that Meet the Following Eligibility Criteria:

• Operating in the agricultural or agri-food sector
• Incorporated in Canada for at least 2 years
• Financially stable
• Not exclusively a retailer and/or distributor
• Not a start-up
• Company must manufacture or conduct R&D in Canada