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Partner blog feature: U of G students demonstrate plant-growth chamber for Canadian Space Agency

A team of visionary U of G student scientists come one step closer to winning the Deep Space Food Challenge, put on by the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) in partnership with Impact Canada. 

The full-scale plant-growth chamber developed by the Canada GOOSE (Growth Options for Outer Space Environments) team is hydroponic. Seeds are planted in a reusable growing medium and regularly irrigated with a fertigation solution made of water and fertilizer and lit by custom LED lights. Only a few hours of maintenance a week are needed to yield as much as 150 kilograms of food a year. 

The University of Guelph is a Bioenterprise Canada Knowledge & Development partner. Bioenterprise supported Impact Canada with program promotion during the early stages of the Deep Space Food Challenge.

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Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?