A community in northern Manitoba turned to technology to help grow vegetables year-round – part of an expansion of a project aimed at creating health, economic, and environmental benefits for the community.
A “smart” vertical farm that has been operating in Opaskwayak Cree Nation since 2016 received a boost this week as part of a federal health and wellbeing program.
Located in the Opaskwayak Community Hall, the farm already supplies free, fresh produce from over 75 plants to over a hundred families in the community – adjacent to The Pas and approximately 520 kilometers northwest of Winnipeg – on a hydroponic, automated vertical farm be cultivated system.
In a vertical farm system, plants are grown in vertically stacked layers, usually indoors and without soil. This approach results in a lower carbon footprint than traditional farming methods.
The Opaskwayak farm uses artificial intelligence and uses two computer systems to monitor the plants and manipulate the lighting, nutrients, water and carbon dioxide levels.
It began as a pilot in 2016, and this week the federal government announced that it will share a portion of $ 4.95 million in funding over six years as part of a federal smart city training program, that aims to build knowledge to make cities healthier.
The funding will support projects at three universities, including the University of Manitoba, which works with the Opaskwayak Health Authority on the vertical farm.
The project includes working with municipal companies to develop business models for food production, packaging and delivery across the region, as well as studies to identify health problems related to food insecurity in the region.
“We’re trying to address the issues by involving students with hands-on experience working with cities,” said Miyoung Suh, professor in the U of M’s Department of Food and Human Nutrition Sciences and lead researcher on the project.
“It won’t change overnight, but if there are fresh vegetables they can consume them, feel better, and be available all the time,” Suh said.
Fight Diabetes
A high incidence of gestational diabetes and spontaneous abortions in pregnant mothers is a particular concern in the region, according to a press release by the U of M on Monday. The researchers will test whether fresh vertical farm vegetables eaten during pregnancy will help lower these tariffs.
Glen Ross, executive director of the Opaskwayak Health Authority, says the community’s diabetes-related disease rate is the highest in the country at around 60 percent.
“We want to get away from that and make a big change so that our region is not perceived as the worst region in Canada for diabetes. We want to become one of the healthiest regions in Canada.”
The quality of the vegetables produced is superior to imported products, he says.
“We ran tests … The shelf life and strength of the vegetables are really high,” he said. Since the vegetables are not transported, transport costs are also saved and there is no need for additives or pesticides.
Basil is just one of the plants grown on OCN’s vertical farming operation. (Riley Laychuk / CBC)
The farm also helps with food security issues, especially in winter, he says.
“When we get vegetables here, they’re usually rubbery, frozen, refrozen, so people don’t want to buy them and they’re expensive, which low-income people can’t afford.”
Ross is optimistic that the program will have other economic and environmental benefits.
There hasn’t been a big impact on jobs yet, he said, “but over the next few years we hope to have a big impact on how vegetables get into our province and people’s homes.”
It is hoped that the program can also provide fresh vegetables for school lunches and snack programs and create a model that can be used by other First Nations and northern communities across the country, the U of M press release said.
