About AIVA

AIVA – the Agriculture Innovation, Validation, and Adoption Network – is designed to derisk on-farm technology adoption for Canadian farmers and bring proven agtech to market.

AIVA partners with farmers and innovators to validate agtech using standardized testing frameworks that can be applied to any technology, anywhere in Canada. AIVA makes it easier for farmers to access proven technology that helps to enhance on-farm efficiency, reduce risks, and increase profitability.

See AIVA’s work in action

Our Projects
AIVA's Solution

Farmer-Centric Approach

AIVA works with farmers to test and validate agtech across multiple Canadian geographies, farms and fields. We evaluate early-stage and market-ready technologies on farms to determine if they deliver measurable value, using two models:

The Validation Model

We find and assess the most promising early-stage agricultural technologies from around the world. These technologies are tested at Validation Hubs, which are applied innovation and demonstration farms that trial technologies in real Canadian environments and prepare the product for commercial deployment.

The Adoption Model

We rigorously test market-ready technologies with Farmer Alliance Members, a group of Canadian farmers who pilot agtech and provide structured feedback as early tech adopters. They help to identify the technologies that demonstrate tangible economic and operational benefits in real-world conditions.

Learn about our Farmers

AIVA Network Coalition

A key part of the AIVA Network is connecting leaders from across Canadian agriculture. That is why we created the AIVA Network Coalition, a strategic council dedicated to bridging the gap between agricultural innovation and on-farm adoption.

The Coalition unifies national programs and brings together over 15 representatives from industry, research, nonprofits, and investment groups. It is an opportunity for leaders to align on challenges, develop actionable strategies to overcome them, and shape AIVA trials and demonstration projects.

Why the Network Works

AIVA unites the people who create innovations, the farms that validate it, and the farmers who adopt it, all within a structured, unbiased system.

Our mission is to ensure that every investment a farmer makes into agtech improves on-farm efficiency and profitability. AIVA aligns farmers and innovators to solve real, on-farm challenges across Canada and provides commercial farmers with third-party validation to make adoption decisions with confidence.

View our projects

Our Team

Rebecca Franklin AIVA Lead Headshot Rebecca Franklin AIVA Network Lead
Alicia Demanuele AIVA Headshot Alicia Demanuele Senior Project Associate
Carl Havixbeck AIVA Headshot Carl Havixbeck Farmer Network Success Manager
Dale Penner AIVA Headshot Dale Penner Project Manager
Talia Thomson AIVA Headshot Talia Thomson Communications Manager

Founding Partners

FCC Colour Logo

Chelsea Gray
Innovation Farms Partnership Manager, FCC

Jacqueline Keena
CEO, EMILI

Gordon Chandler
CFO, EMILI

Johnny Park
CEO, WHIN

Jack Stucky
CTO, WHIN

Jason Tennenhouse
VP, Strategy and Design, WHIN

Josh Karshen
Director, Business Development, WHIN