Grow Ontario Market Initiative

Amount: up to $125,000 in funding per Project

The Grow Ontario Market Initiative provides funding to primary producers, processors and industry organizations to find and develop domestic or export market opportunities.

You may use the funding to grow your business through:

  • marketing analysis and planning
  • new product development
  • marketing activities

Eligibility Activities:

The following activities related to new or expanded domestic (within Canada) and international (outside of Canada) markets are eligible under the Initiative:

  • third-party advisory services related to market analysis and planning;
  • third-party advisory services for new product development activities;
  • third-party services for implementation of a business or marketing plan to access or expand into a new market.

Eligible Costs:

The following costs are eligible for the purposes of the Initiative, provided they were reasonably incurred and directly necessary to complete the Recipient’s Project:

    1. costs that were incurred after the date that the Project was approved and before the date the Project is to be completed
    2. costs that reflect the actual costs to the Recipient, less any costs, including taxes, for which the Recipient has received, will receive or is eligible to receive, a rebate, credit or refund, whether or not the Recipient applied for that rebate, credit or refund
    3. third-party service fees for:
      1. creative development services
      2. product development services
      3. regulatory services
      4. consumer and marketing analysis
      5. marketing and sales
      6. laboratory and diagnostic analysis
      7. advertisement placement costs or media buys
    4. one-time tradeshow entrance and exhibiting fees
    5. shipping costs of marketing materials and product samples
    6. costs of rental of facilities and rental of equipment for new product development only
    7. transportation, meal and hotel costs in accordance with Appendix A for Recipient’s staff and third-party service providers

Amount:

Processor & Primary Producer Recipients are eligible to receive 50% of Eligible Costs up to a maximum of $60,000.00 (sixty thousand dollars) in funding per Project under the Initiative.

An Industry Organization Recipient is eligible to receive 50% of Eligible Costs up to a maximum of $125,000 (one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars) in funding per Project under the Initiative.

Deadline:

The application intake period is open, as of May 19, 2023.

There is no deadline, but the intake is subject to the availability of funding allocated to the initiative. Once funds are allocated, the intake will close.