Why promising research fails to reach the market, and what leaders say needs to change.

Canada isn’t struggling to generate ideas. It’s struggling to make them matter.

That’s the core challenge facing the country’s seed and ag innovation system, according to Nancy Tout, interim CEO of the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS).

“We’re incredibly strong at generating innovation,” Tout says. “But we need to spend more time thinking about the output side of that equation.”

Canada’s ecosystem is packed with strengths — universities, public breeding programs, private companies. But those assets aren’t translating into impact at the pace they should. The issue isn’t capability. It’s connection.

The Gap Between Discovery and Delivery

Tout points to the “valley of death” (the gap between research success and real-world adoption) as a persistent weak spot.

“An integrated system looks at discovery right through to commercialization,” she says. “Right now, we have a fractured system that works really well together, but we’re only as strong as the sum of our parts.”

Canada excels at funding research. But too often, promising ideas stall before reaching farmers.

“We have a disproportionate focus on the input side,” Tout says. “Where we’re falling short is delivering impact into the marketplace.”

Strong Pieces, Weak System

The challenge is structural. Canada’s innovation ecosystem is made up of high-performing but disconnected parts.

“I often think about our system as full of rich assets,” Tout says. “But if you look at it as a whole pipeline, from discovery through delivery, you operate in a different mindset.”

Without that system-wide view, efforts to fix gaps risk being rushed and fragmented.

“I worry we’re trying to solve things too quickly with a short-term lens,” she says. “We may make decisions that don’t have long-term impact.”

What Gets Measured Matters

One of the most overlooked issues, Tout argues, is measurement.

“Turning innovation into real-world impact starts with system-wide measurements and KPIs aligned to that impact,” she says.

Without shared metrics, different parts of the system optimize for different outcomes.

“If we’re measuring different things, we’re incentivizing different behaviors,” she adds. “And ultimately funding different results.”

From Good to Great

Canada isn’t starting from zero. In fact, its strength is part of the problem.

“We’re all doing good things,” Tout says. “But we need to move from good to great.”

The opportunity lies in better leveraging what already exists — talent, infrastructure, and data — across institutional and provincial boundaries.

A more modern approach to innovation, she adds, also means building interdisciplinary teams that go beyond traditional models.

Designing for Impact

For Tout, the path forward comes down to intentional design.

“We need to intentionally fund that valley of death, not just discovery,” she says. “And align incentives from discovery through to impact.”

That includes stronger public-private-producer collaboration and a clearer focus on execution, not just ideas.

A Shared Purpose

Ultimately, the shift is as much cultural as it is structural.

“We have to build intentional bridges,” Tout says. “When people see a shared opportunity, they rally around it.”

That starts with a common goal; one that pushes beyond institutional silos.

“We have to figure out something bigger than the sum of our parts,” she says. “When we create space for ideas and data to flow, great things can happen.”

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