Can Canada Grow More of Its Own Food? Inside the $750-Million Greenhouse Strategy

Canada is one of the world’s great agricultural countries, yet Canadians depend heavily on imported fruits and vegetables. The federal government says 88% of the fresh fruit and nuts consumed in Canada and 72% of vegetables are imported, with 40% of those imports coming from the United States.

Canada’s new National Food Security Strategy proposes $750 million over seven years to expand controlled-environment agriculture: greenhouses, vertical farms and other enclosed systems capable of producing food beyond the outdoor growing season.

The objective is not to grow bananas in every province. It is to identify crops Canada can produce competitively, reduce exposure to foreign disruption and make year-round supply more dependable.

Where the $750 million would go

The federal strategy divides the funding into two streams.

$650 million for technology adoption

This stream would support existing and new facilities using:

• Automation and robotics
• Efficient lighting
• Digital growing and monitoring systems
• Energy-saving equipment
• Facility upgrades
• New controlled-environment builds

The goal is to lower energy and labour costs while expanding the range of crops that can be grown competitively.

$100 million for rural and northern communities

The second stream targets locally appropriate systems for communities facing high transportation costs, short seasons or unreliable supply. These could include modular greenhouses, container farms, cold frames and systems paired with local or renewable energy.

The government’s targets

By 2032, the strategy aims to:

• Double the value of controlled-environment food sold in Canada from $774 million in 2024 to $1.55 billion
• Reduce dependence on imports of crops suitable for controlled-environment production by 20%
• Reduce greenhouse labour and energy costs by 10% to 20%

Those are targets, not guaranteed results. The government will need to publish annual measurements showing which crops expanded, how much import dependence changed and whether production became cheaper without permanent operating subsidies.

What Canada can realistically grow

Canadian greenhouses already produce substantial quantities of tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Expansion is most plausible for products with:

• High value per square metre
• Short growing cycles
• Strong year-round demand
• High transportation costs when imported
• A crop variety suited to controlled production
• The ability to automate harvesting or handling

Promising categories include leafy greens, herbs, strawberries and selected vine crops. The strategy notes that greenhouse strawberry production nearly tripled from 2.5 million kilograms in 2020 to more than 7.5 million kilograms worth $75.2 million in 2024.

Some field crops and tree fruits are unlikely to shift indoors economically. Controlled agriculture should complement Canadian field, orchard and livestock farming rather than pretending every food can be grown under glass.

Southern Ontario’s opportunity

Southern Ontario already has greenhouse expertise, transportation access, food processors and a large nearby customer base. Essex County and surrounding regions demonstrate what clusters of growers, suppliers, technicians and marketers can achieve.

Expansion could create work for:

• Growers and crop specialists
• Electricians and automation technicians
• Millwrights and refrigeration mechanics
• Boiler and heating technicians
• Truck and equipment mechanics
• Packaging and food-processing workers
• Software and sensor specialists

However, land, electricity, natural gas, water, housing and grid capacity will influence where facilities can operate competitively.

Energy is the central challenge

A Canadian greenhouse replaces some sunlight and outdoor warmth with capital equipment and purchased energy. In winter, heating and lighting can become decisive operating costs.

Automation may reduce labour per kilogram, but it does not eliminate:

• Heating demand
• Supplemental lighting
• Ventilation and humidity control
• Water treatment and pumping
• Refrigeration
• Carbon dioxide management
• Backup-power requirements

Projects located near low-cost electricity, waste heat, renewable natural gas, industrial carbon dioxide or district-energy systems may have an advantage. Funding an expensive greenhouse without a credible long-term energy plan could produce food that is Canadian but not affordable.

Will this lower grocery prices?

More domestic supply can improve competition and reduce exposure to exchange rates, border delays and foreign crop failures. It does not guarantee lower shelf prices.

The retail price still includes:

• Production
• Packaging
• Transportation
• Warehousing
• Retail operations
• Spoilage
• Wholesale and retail margins

Canadian greenhouse produce may sometimes cost more to grow while offering fresher supply, shorter transportation and greater reliability. The honest promise is improved resilience and potentially more stable pricing—not instant cheap produce.

Food security is larger than greenhouse acreage

The broader strategy also proposes:

• Expanding food terminals and regional hubs
• Helping independent retailers access more suppliers
• Increasing domestic food processing
• A new $1-billion Agri-food Project Finance Fund
• Measures supporting young farmers and farm succession
• Faster approvals for certain agricultural inputs
• Help for provincially inspected processors seeking federal market access

The government wants the domestically produced share of processed food consumed in Canada to rise from 70% to 80%. That could be as important as greenhouse acreage because producing tomatoes in Canada has limited value if the processing, packaging or inputs remain vulnerable to foreign disruption.

Rural and northern food systems

Small northern systems should not be judged solely against southern wholesale prices. A container-grown vegetable may be expensive compared with a Toronto supermarket but competitive against produce flown thousands of kilometres to a remote community.

Success should be measured through nutrition, reliability, community ownership, training, energy use and the delivered local price—not only kilograms produced.

What Canadians should watch

The program needs transparent answers to five questions:

1. How much funding is repayable financing versus grants?
2. Who receives the money—existing producers, new entrants or large investors?
3. What is the public cost per additional kilogram produced?
4. Do energy use and emissions improve per kilogram?
5. Do consumers actually receive lower or more stable prices?

The bottom line

Canada cannot eliminate food imports, nor should it. Trade gives Canadians variety and provides essential food when domestic crops are out of season.

But relying on foreign supply for most fresh fruit and nearly three-quarters of vegetables creates risk. A well-designed greenhouse strategy could expand Canadian production, create skilled employment and protect consumers from some external disruptions. Its success will depend on energy economics, crop selection and whether public money creates durable production rather than facilities that survive only while subsidies continue.

Verified sources

• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: National Food Security Strategy
• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: More Canada on Your Plate