viruses more accurately and quickly, including a debilitating disease in greenhouse tomatoes. Previous methods for detecting tomato brown rugose fruit virus rely on a multi-step process and PCR tests, which can be imperfect and yield false positive results. “With our method, we have a portable detection device that can more reliably detect problems in plant tissue and swabbed surfaces, and we are the only company providing this test so far,” says Maglione. He says the device is approximately the size of a mobile phone, and with trained expertise, it provides an efficient and effective way to detect a problematic virus — but it has the capacity to detect multiple diseases, in multiple plants, from anywhere in the world. “This test is an entry point for the greenhouse sector and the agricultural sector at large, but the beauty of this platform is that it can do so much more. It really is the future,” Maglione says. UNEXPECTED BENEFITS FROM THE PANDEMIC For a business that was taking off during 2020, Maglione says the Covid-19 pandemic was an unlikely ally because of the public education that came with it. “Before the pandemic, when we talked about DNA, PCR, and sequencing, it seemed too high-tech for most people to understand, but now concepts like ‘PCR’ are more common for all of us,” says Maglione. WHAT’S NEXT Now, with laboratories in Quebec and Guelph and growing interest from agricultural producers in Canada and internationally, Harvest Genomics is poised for more growth. The company has been presenting its technology at conferences around the world and is already expanding testing in Mexico. In 2021, Harvest Genomics was unveiled as the private commercialization arm of Soyagen 2, a large-scale Genome Canadafunded project that aims to develop an ultra-low-cost genotyping platform and genomic prediction tool. And in 2022, Harvest Genomics was successful in securing a grant from BioEnterprise, a Canadian food and agricultural technology accelerator organization, to develop and finalize the details around its portable platform, which is expected to launch more broadly in early 2023. BOTTOM LINE FOR GRAIN GROWERS Of the many ways Harvest Genomics hopes to support agriculture, Maglione says there are two affordable services grain growers can access today to make a difference on their farms—weed resistance testing and seed purity testing. “Our company was founded by three scientists, Christopher Grainger, Davoud Torkamaneh, and Rémi Maglione, who saw that there weren’t many services available for producers at affordable prices,” says Maglione. “It’s a lesson that these tools can be used for a variety of real-life applications, not just for research programs.” To learn more, visit www.harvestgenomics.ca. l ONTARIO GRAIN FARMER 23 NOVEMBER 2022 “Before the pandemic, when we talked about DNA, PCR, and sequencing, it seemed too high-tech for most people to understand, but now concepts like ‘PCR’ are more common for all of us.” From barns to silos, 11,000+ farm operators like you have one thing in common. They are understood, valued and insured by The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group. Find a qualified broker in Commonwell Country today: CommonwellCountry.ca/farm NOTHING SMELLS AS SWEET.
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