On May 14, 2020 the Government of Canada, through Farm Credit Canada (“FCC”), announced the creation of a fund to support agribusiness and agri-food companies in responding to business disruptions, like COVID-19.
The launch of the $100 million Agriculture and Food Business Solutions Fund is designed to support viable enterprises dealing with significant business disruptions. The fund is solely financed by FCC and is being launched in partnership with Forage Capital Inc., a Calgary-based venture capital firm.
The stated purpose of the fund is to support business in the agribusiness and agri-food sector, including those involved in a variety of areas, from primary production to agri-tech and food manufacturing. Financing will be provided to companies on an individual basis, up to a maximum of $10 million.
To qualify for funding, companies will need to show how they have been impacted by an unexpected business disruption. The stated goal of the fund is to assist companies that have faced a significant change in their business and facilitate a return to financial stability.
The Government of Canada has announced other measures through FCC to assist the agricultural sector, including increasing the lending capacity of FCC by $5 billion to access cash flow during COVID-19. Other Federal Government support for agriculture is reviewed in our blog post here.
If you have any questions regarding the funding, or other issues related to agriculture, please contact a member of our food and agribusiness group.