The Quebec-based company Winter Farm announced that it has raised $46 million. Winter Farm will use this funding to build one of the world’s most important vertical farms dedicated to strawberry production. In the coming months, six 600 m2 vertical farms will be added to two existing farms already in operation. The Vaudreuil site will ensure that nearly one million kilograms of succulent Fraise d’hiver strawberries will reach the market each year.
Winter Farm, the Quebec-based company whose aim is to replace 10% of Canada’s strawberry imports, announced that it has raised $46 million in a funding round that has seen the participation of the Quebec Government and Investissement Québec, and the addition of new investors (Desjardins, Farm Credit Canada, Financière Agricole du Québec, and Capital Financière Agricole Inc., as well as two private partners). The Vaudreuil site will ensure that nearly one million kilograms of succulent Fraise d’hiver strawberries will reach the market each year. In the coming months, six 600 m2 vertical farms will be added to two existing farms already in operation. These installations will use 20 to 25 times less space compared to open field production and generate minimal greenhouse gases.
“The additional partner represents a vote of confidence in the industrial potential of Winter Farm and our capacity to provide fruit of the highest caliber. A more competitive and sustainable local agriculture that can compete with import markets must be developed via innovation. We appreciate the St-Denis family joining us on this voyage. Their participation will immediately help to Vaudreuil become a top-tier technological showcase for the vertical farming sector! “, according to Alain Brisebois, Winter Farm’s president, and CEO.
“Winter Farm’s vertical farming and smart lighting concepts are innovative and profitable for Quebec. In addition to promoting local production and encouraging the purchase of local Quebec products, they contribute to the development of a sustainable agricultural sector.” – Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of Economy, Innovation, and Energy, Minister Responsible for Regional Economic Development and Minister Responsible for the Metropole and the Montréal Region.
Image provided by Winter Farms
