Sponsor Information for the 2018

Minimum Goal for Award - $20,000 x 2

1 Ag Tech

1 Food

Introduction

The agriculture and agri-food sector has always been innovative in running their businesses, adapting practices and looking for partners to compete in the local, national and global economy.

To recognize and support this innovative spirit, the Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce created the AVCC’s Agriculture Innovation Accelerator Award. This annual program recognizes outstanding agriculture and agri-food related innovators including producers, processors, suppliers and organizations. The award is intended to help the successful applicants move their project forward to the next phase of development.

Award recipients will also receive use of the AVCC’s Agriculture Innovation Accelerator Award wordmark to support their marketing efforts.

The recipient of the 2018 awards will be recognized at events across the Annapolis Valleyin 2018 and 2019.

Objectives

The objectives of the AVCC’s Agriculture Innovation Accelerator Award is to:

  • recognize innovators in theagricultureand agri- food sector
  • foster innovation in the agriculture and agri-food sector
  • raise awareness about the importance ofinnovation in agriculture and its impact on the Annapolis Valleyeconomy
  • Provide assistance for innovators to be able to move their projects to the next level of development

Support innovation and awareness of the benefits of our business community by participating in this award.

Why Become a Sponsor?

The AVCC and sponsors see the award as an opportunity to promote growth in our area. The award is targeted to assist a local innovator to advance development of their project. By coming together and combining our resources, the contribution will be a significant benefit to the innovator.

This also as an opportunity to increase the profile of the area to Government, investors, innovators and the business community.

The award will be promoted by:

  • Media interviews and press releases
  • Direct email through various business and industry groups
  • Advertising
  • Facebook and other social media
  • Promotion of the winner

The Award will be the centerpiece for the AVCC Quarterly dinner in December 2018.

Award Sponsorship Opportunities

Contributors to the award may contribute cash or services that would relevant to the development of an innovations potential. Sponsorships will be recognized based on the level of their contribution. While services are as valuable as cash, please consider a cash sponsorship, if possible. These levels of sponsorship and recognition are:

  • Platinum - $5,000 and over
  • Gold - $3,000 and over
  • Silver - $2,500 and over
  • Bronze - $1,000 and over
  • Supporter – Under $1,000

HST is applicable to all sponsorship levels.

Additional Award Information

Eligibility Criteria

Individuals, groups or businesses are eligible to apply under the program if they are developing an idea, process, product or service that will result in a unique benefit the agriculture economy in the Annapolis Valley.

To qualify the individual, group or business must:

  • be located in the Annapolis Valley from West Hants to Digby County.
  • be prepared to utilize the award to advance the development of innovation outlined in the application

Innovation areas may include:

Examples of innovation areas include but are not limited to:

  • improved business practices
  • improvements in the equipment used in the agriculture and agri-food industry
  • application of technology to the agriculture and agri-food industry
  • response to consumer demands (e.g. new product development, value added, marketing, strategic alliances, local food)
  • environmental stewardship
  • energy and bio-economy
  • health and safety
  • food safety and traceability
  • education and marketing of the agriculture and food industry to society

Selection Process

The following process will be used to select the AVCC’s Agriculture Innovation Accelerator Award recipients:

  • Applications will be received at AVCC
  • Applications will be reviewed for eligibility and forwarded for consideration by an independent review panel established by the AVCC
  • The panel will select the applications to be forwarded to the judges for subsequent review
  • The top entries selected will give a presentation to thepanel of judges. The judges will select the winner based on the original application and the presentation.

Assessment Criteria

The following criteria will be used to assess applications:

  • Uniqueness and Originality - Refers to historical information of where the innovation originated and the uniqueness of design or style utilized to produce the innovation.
  • Impactor Benefit - Refers to the economic and/or social benefit to Annapolis Valley’s agriculture sector resulting from the innovation.
  • Resources–Refers to the resources available to the applicant to further the development of the innovation in the application.
  • Benefit of the Award–Refers to the ability of the award to significantly advance the development of the innovation in the application.

Additional consideration may be given to:

  • Development - Refers to the extent to which the idea or concept has been thought through to completion. Consideration may be given to the stage of development i.e. emerging through to mature.
  • Adoption and/or Commercialization - Refers to the degree of success (or potential for success) of adoption by other agri-food businesses or the commercialization and marketing of the innovation.
  • Broader Use - The innovation must have potential for use on a broader basis and beable to demonstrate the potential for having a positive effect on the agricultural industry.

Sponsorship Level Details

BENEFIT / pLATINUm / gOLD / SILVER / BRONZE / SUPPORTER
Minimum Contribution / $5,000 / $3,000 / $2,500 / $1,000 / $100
Poster / Yes
Name in Radio Ads / Yes / Yes
Display at Dinner / Yes / Yes / Yes / Yes / Yes
Banner at Dinner / Yes / Yes / Yes / Yes
Power Point at Meeting / Logo / Logo / Logo / Name / Name
Mention During Meeting / Yes + Bio / Yes + Bio / Yes + Bio / Yes
Meeting Program / Logo / Logo / Logo / Name / Name
Sign for Winner’s Future Presentations / Logo / Logo / Logo / Name
Dinner Tickets / 2 / 2 / 1 / 1
Award Web Page / Logo / Logo / Name / Name

2017 Winner

Congratulations to

Integrated HACCP Solutions Inc.

Integrated HACCP Solution's mission is to promote global food safety through access to reliable and affordable Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) software tools. They provide an intuitive online service that guides food processors through the development of HACCP systems. HACCP systems are currently used worldwide as a means to ensure food safety through prevention and trace ability.

Their innovation is their development of an advanced food safety management system that enables food processing companies to quickly create and easily manage HACCP systems. Their intuitive online service guides users through the proper HACCP generation process. The software verifies that the proposed system meets the necessary regulatory and food safety requirements, effectively reducing the chance of recalls and/or failed audits. Validation is something that was lacking in existing solutions in this industry, allowing systems to be developed improperly or not meeting regulations.

They also include a digital monitoring platform for the necessary ongoing monitoring of plans. This monitoring system will limit physical paperwork and greatly simplify the audit process. This relieves a lot of stress associated with managing piles of records and allows for better trend tracking to reduce risk profiles and maximize efficiency.

The other finalists included:

  • Colibri Software, Inc – Stollopia that develops map based web content
  • Cogmagun Poultry Processing Co., Ltd –Fully cooked, ready to eat free range chicken
  • Horton Ridge Malt & Grain Co., Ltd – Infrastructure to produce locally sourced malt
  • Midgard Insect Farms Inc. – Processing crickets into a commercial meal
  • Novagreen East Inc. –Production and processing or JART
  • Wolfville Farmers Market – WFM2Go web application to order market products

The agriculture and agri-food sector has always been innovative in running their businesses, adapting practices and looking for partners to compete in the local, national and global economy. To recognize and support this innovative spirit, the Annapolis Valley Chamber of Commerce created the AVCC’s Agriculture Innovation Accelerator Award.

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Prior Award Winners

2016 - TAPROOT FIBRE LAB

Taproot Fibre Lab invested in small scale linen production, from seed to yarn. After 2 years of growing and testing processing techniques, we are developing the appropriate mechanization to process flax fibre in a cost-efficient manner.We arepassionate about investing in rural infrastructure and finding sustainable technologies to achieve economic success through value-added products. We love that linen is a plant-based fibre that we can incorporate into our organic vegetable rotation.

TapRoot Fibre Lab will be the only company in North America devoted to manufacturing small-scale machinery to transform flax into linen yarn; offering an alternative to large, commercial processing and keeping money in our communities.

2015 - FROSTBYTE INTERACTIVE INC.

(AERHYVE DIVISION)

“Winning is so much more than just an affirmation of our hard work. It’s a demonstration of the commitment to innovation here in the Annapolis Valley. This award is an important stepping stone in our ability to create and retain high-value jobs in Nova Scotia. With increasing populations, lack of land, and the environmental stresses of climate change, smarter farming is not merely “technical” innovation; it’s necessary innovation, and we’re excited to be at the forefront of this global effort!” JOHN FROST, President, Frostbyte Interactive Inc.

2014 Winner - HILLCREEK FAMILY FARM

"The award winners Hillcreek Family Farm (Theo & Rosalie) were overwhelmed and were very thankful to the committee for having the insight to create an award to help

move innovations forward." - Gary Morton

2013 Winner - HARVEST HAND NEW MEDIA COMMUNITIES

" Winning is huge for us, but the process was incredibly valuable too.
Practically speaking, the package offered by this award offers tremendous resources to help us in the early phase of our business. Incorporation, maturing our business plan, accessing support on business development in general, and capital to allow us to hire our first employee are all items that this award will help us achieve in short order.” – Harvest Hand