O’Leary, Prince Edward Island, October 13, 2005— Future Tech West, a rural Information Technology (IT) centre focused on agribusiness, is developing a new portal-based web environment to assist the Island’s agricultural community.
This E-Farm Portal will give farmers and specialists access to a variety of technology-based products and services. It will include opportunities for farmers to collaborate and share best practices online, web conferencing, e-learning and content management, a grassroots test-bed for new products, a farmers’ storefront for buying and selling goods and services, tools to improve farm productivity and a comprehensive and interactive section on farm and food safety.
The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) is providing $230,000 to the project through the Innovative Communities Fund (ICF), with an additional $20,000 from the PEI Adapt Council, a not-for-profit organization with funds from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada dedicated to increasing the long-term growth, self-reliance, employment and competitiveness for PEI’s agri-food sector and rural communities. The Province of Prince Edward Island, through Technology PEI, is providing $50,000. Future Tech West will cover the remaining project costs.
The Honourable Joe McGuire, Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and Eva Rodgerson, MLA for West Point—Bloomfield, on behalf of the Honourable Mike Currie, Minister of Development and Technology, along with Darren Gill, Manager of Future Tech West, were on-site to review the development plan for the new e-service.
“This new E-Farm Portal will position Prince Edward Island as a research and development test-bed for emerging wireless and web-based services and other farming-related technologies,” said Minister McGuire. “These are also important economic development tools for the agriculture industry because they will foster collaboration in agribusiness, promote innovative thinking and lead to new product development.”
The new portal will be designed to assist farmers in improving farm productivity, reducing production costs, enhancing product quality, and improving accountability through the management and communication of up-to-date policies, standards and methods. It will also provide financial tools and additional resources for evaluating and planning production costs, pest and disease management and crop rotations.
“With a service like the E-Farm portal in place, farmers will be better equipped to deal with crop monitoring and food safety issues among several other crucial elements related to farming needs,” said MLA Rodgerson. “The challenges of a viable agriculture industry are becoming much more significant. Meeting those challenges demands the implementation of innovative technology services that will enable us to remain competitive.”
The development of the portal, which requires the complex adaptation of hardware and software, is expected to take several months to complete.
“This new service will provide an online environment that will foster creative ideas among farmers, resulting in new and enhanced strategies, methods and solutions,” said Future Tech West’s Darren Gill. “When it’s ready to go, we plan to launch the service to farmers in a hands-on demonstration of its many uses and benefits.”