There’s a wide variety of niche markets for products such as Christmas trees, logs for home construction, furniture components, flooring, siding, fencing, and birch syrup
There’s money to be made in woodlots, and thanks to Growing Forward 2, there’s also government funding to help producers develop a new income stream, says Toso Bozic, an agroforester with Alberta Agriculture.
At present, there are few Alberta suppliers to meet the demand for logs for home construction and Christmas trees, but that’s only the start, said Bozic. Furniture components, flooring, siding, fencing, and birch syrup are other possibilities, he added.
“The key is that you have to be very specialized,” he said. “Which means that there are very few people involved in the business, you have a good understanding of how to operate the business, as well as how to meet the needs of your various clients, which can be quite different.”
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Marketing is one area where Growing Forward 2 can help many budding entrepreneurs, he said. Funding is available under the Business Opportunity and Business Management Skills Development programs and can be used for things such as pre-feasibility studies, business plans, testing of food products, and for financing the purchase of specialized machinery.
Successful applicants are eligible for reimbursement of between 50 per cent and 75 per cent of certain non-capital costs related to researching and planning a new business venture. For instance, established producers and processors will be reimbursed for 50 per cent of eligible consulting fees to certain maximums. Producer groups and agri-industry associations will also be reimbursed to a certain maximum.
Those eligible for funding are: producers in Alberta who have an established, primary business in the production of crops or livestock; agri-food processors with an established business in Alberta; new entrants into Alberta’s agriculture and agri-food industry who will have a primary business in production of crops, livestock, or a processing business; senior managers, executive directors or directors on a board that represents an industry organization, producer group or processor; and groups of producers or agri-food industry associations seeking training for their organization or board members. More information is available at www.growingfor ward.alberta.ca.
