SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA — Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) has launched a renewed five-year Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program (CAAP) to help the sector continue to adapt and remain competitive, Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced on May 26.

"Our government remains committed to helping Canadian producers adapt to emerging challenges and market realities,” Ritz said. “The renewed CAAP program will allow our agriculture sector to proactively manage issues, seize new opportunities and grow the Canadian economy."

Under CAAP (2014-19), over C$50 million will be available for investments in industry-led projects that will help the sector seize opportunities, respond to emerging issues, and investigate and pilot approaches to deal with new and ongoing challenges.

The renewed program will enable the agricultural industry to proactively tap into opportunities and tackle unforeseen challenges, similar to the projects pursued by Pulse Canada and the Flax Council of Canada that received investments under the previous CAAP program (2009-14).

The program is open and applications will be accepted on a continuous basis until funds are fully utilized: over C$50 million over the duration of the five-year program. All projects must be either national or sector-wide in scope.

CAAP complements existing investments currently being provided under Growing Forward 2, the five-year federal-provincial- territorial framework that includes a $3 billion investment in strategic initiatives that foster innovation, promote market development and competitiveness.

"Funding from the CAAP program for the Pulse Flour Milling Project enabled the industry to investigate and develop optimal processing techniques to produce pulse flours for a variety of food product applications. This work is paving the way for greater value-added processing of pulses in Canada and is creating new opportunities for pulses in a wide range of processed foods," Gordon Bacon, chief executive officer of Pulse Canada.