Government challenges small businesses to innovate

Dec 07, 2018

Invites Canadian small businesses to develop innovative solutions to eight new challenges

Ottawa, Ontario - As the single largest purchaser of goods and services, the federal government is using procurement to help Canadian small businesses succeed.

Through the Innovative Solutions Canada (ISC) program, government departments are inviting small businesses to come up with a new innovative product, service or solution in answer to specific challenges they face. Winning small businesses may receive up to $150,000 to refine their research and development and, if accepted into Phase 2, receive up to $1 million to develop a working prototype. The government can then act as a first customer, helping small businesses to commercialize their innovations, scale up their business and create good middle-class jobs across Canada.

The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and the Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, today announced the launch of eight new challenges.

National Defence, through its Canadian Safety and Security Program jointly led with Public Safety Canada, is challenging small businesses to:

Develop tools to help first responders make more timely and informed decisions, with the goal of better protecting Canadians in emergency situations such as terrorist threats or natural disasters.

Develop tools and technologies to help identify available resources and the timelines for their delivery during emergency situations. These tools and technologies will help ensure that the right resources are at the right place at the right time to best protect the safety and security of Canadians.

Develop innovative devices, applications or protective equipment to help firefighters rapidly assess threats, hazards and obstacles they face while fighting fires. This will help firefighters make more informed decisions, be more effective and better protect Canadians.

Public Services and Procurement Canada is challenging small businesses to:

Develop a cost-effective and innovative method of stabilizing the coal mine tailings that are currently contained under water behind the Victoria Junction Tailings Dam in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. The goal is to decommission the dam while keeping tailings stable to protect the local environment.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is challenging small businesses to:

Develop a chemical compound that would attract a wide variety of insects that attack hardwood tree species such as maple, poplar and oak. The compound would help in detecting those insects more accurately and sooner. This will enable better protection of local trees.

Develop an innovative device to detect volatile organic compounds associated with invasive plant pests. Better monitoring and detection of these plant pests will help CFIA better protect Canadian plants.

Develop an effective and easy-to-use device that fishery industry workers and others could use for early detection of marine biotoxins. This would help avoid the distribution and consumption of unsafe shellfish.

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada is challenging small businesses to:

Develop a digital tool to trace real-time inputs and outputs from the steel supply chain. The adoption of this new digital technology will provide information to enhance the production of higher-quality steel. It will improve the identification of the source of raw material and the tracing of the product through supply chains. This tool will help Canadian steel manufacturers be more efficient and more competitive.

Innovative Solutions Canada is a key component of the government’s Innovation and Skills Plan, a multi-year plan to make Canada a global innovation leader and prepare Canadians to succeed in tomorrow’s economy.

Source : Government of Canada

Video: 2025 USDA December Crop Report a “Dud” + Trump $12 Billion U.S. Farm Aid

The USDA December crop report was friendly corn, neutral soybeans and bearish wheat. The USDA did surprise and increase the 25/26 U.S. corn export forecast to a new record high at 3.2 billion bushels now up 12% vs. last year vs. prior at +9% vs. the export pace to date up 30% the best in 10 years even higher than 20/21! The USDA left the 25/26 U.S. soybean export pace unchanged at 1.635 billion bushels. Higher global wheat supplies will remain a weight and headwind for wheat into year end and start of 2026.
Mexico is now the #1 buyer of U.S. corn, soybeans (usually China), wheat and pork!
USDA also released its long-term early projections but expect more changes by February of 2026.
Trump announces a $12 billion U.S. farmer aid package to be paid out by February 28, 2026. This helps no one but the ag banks, farm equipment companies, seed and fertilizer companies. It does prevent more farmer bushels from being sold near-term but is not bullish grain prices long-term. The Trump administration should focus on increasing U.S. domestic demand and propping up grain futures so farmers can cover their higher costs, up since COVID of 2020.
The China U.S. soybean purchase tracker now stands at 4.521 mmt or 38% of the 12 mmt promised by China at year end or is it end of February or the growing season? Why the discrepancy vs. the fact sheet. The optics are poor for the Trump administration.
After surging to contract highs U.S. natural gas futures plunged over 30+% in just 5-trading days!
Silver traded to new record highs as the debasement and de dollarization trade continued but technicals remain overbought near-term.
Soybean futures remained in correction mode after the funds went record long futures on Nov. 19 +233,000 contracts but the $10.80 support should hold into year end when the fund profit taking/liquidation comes to an end from the year end, end of month and end of quarter selling.
The U.S. Fed cut interest rates for the 3rd time by 25 basis points to a range of 3.50 – 3.75% and they will only cut one more time in 2026 and once in 20267/ but when Powell is gone next April the replacement is willing to cut more aggressively and we could see U.S. interest rates fall to 2.0% very bullish for ag and stocks as it could reignite inflation into 2027.
After 2 months of being drier than normal in Brazil the rains have finally arrived for the 1st half of December, and a record crop is still in the cards but if this pattern continues and verifies it could start to delay the harvest. Argentina after being too wet has turned dry but they are too small, compared top Brazil in the grand picture.
The Canadian dollar surged to $0.73 after better-than-expected employment data with 180,000 new jobs in the past 3-months and 3rd quarter GDP at +2.6% but this could be short-lived.
The latest CFTC report as of 11-19-2025 reported a record long fund position in soybeans at +233,000 contracts when 2026 March soybean futures peaked on 11-19-25 at $11.724/bu.