Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre

What Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre does

The Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre (OAFVC) is a government-owned, shared-use food manufacturing facility operated by Northumberland County and located at 216 Purdy Road in Colborne, Ontario, one minute south of Highway 401 at exit 497. Constructed in 2018 in response to a Regional Local Food Business Retention and Expansion project led by Northumberland County Economic Development in partnership with nine regional jurisdictions, OAFVC provides food entrepreneurs, farmers, and small food businesses access to professionally equipped, food-safe production space on a "pay-to-play" basis without requiring capital investment in equipment. Core services include Small Batch Food Manufacturing, Clean Space Services with ATP (adenosine triphosphate) cleaning verification and allergen testing under NSF-approved procedures via Sani Marc, Production Assistance from experienced Food Service Workers, access to a range of Food Processing Equipment (tempering rooms, mechanical fillers, production lines), on-site Food-Safe Storage (dry, cold, frozen) with flexible monthly rates, and Shipping/Receiving Services with an on-grade bay and self-levelling dock.

OAFVC generates revenue through four primary streams: usage-based Production Space Rental (per-shift fees for booked production shifts), recurring Storage Services (monthly billing for dry, cold, and frozen on-site storage with no long-term contracts), usage-based Shipping and Receiving Services supporting scaling from local to province-wide distribution, and Donations supporting the centre's mission. Pricing is not publicly disclosed but is structured around monthly storage rates and pay-as-you-go production shifts, with discounted fees available to Northumberland County residents and businesses. The centre has helped launch 74 food businesses and bring nearly 200 Made in Ontario products to market between 2018 and 2020, with an ongoing average of 85 different products brought to market annually. Key partnerships include Sani Marc (cleaning), Dairy Farmers of Ontario (dairy innovation), Northumberland Federation of Agriculture (farmer referrals), Ontario Federation of Agriculture, and a nine-jurisdiction regional collaboration.

OAFVC serves a primarily horizontal segmentation of SMB customers across Ontario, with primary segments being Food Entrepreneurs and Start-ups and Farmers and Agricultural Producers, supplemented by Restaurants/Bakeries, Plant-Based and Sustainable Food Producers, and Schools/Non-Profit Groups. Go-to-market is community-led and partnership-driven, relying on Facebook, the Northumberland County government network, and Northumberland Federation of Agriculture referrals rather than paid marketing. The facility has 6 employees and is classified as a private, government-operated shared-use manufacturing facility with no public listing or external investment.

Name

Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre

Legal name

Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre

Website

https://oafvc.ca

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre (OAFVC) is a Northumberland County-operated shared-use food manufacturing facility in Colborne, Ontario that provides food entrepreneurs, farmers, and SMBs with pay-to-play access to professional production space, food-safe storage, and shipping infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Colborne

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Production Space Rental: Food entrepreneurs pay to use OAFVC production spaces on a shift basis. Clients book production shifts in professionally cleaned, equipped manufacturing spaces with qualified production support staff available.
2. Storage Services: Monthly billing for dry, cold, and frozen on-site storage for client ingredients, packaging, and finished products. No long-term contracts required, offering flexibility for local farmers and farm markets.
3. Shipping and Receiving Services: On-grade bay for loading/unloading vehicles from minivans to cube-trucks, and self-levelling dock for transport trailers, supporting clients scaling up from single-store deliveries to province-wide distribution.
4. Donations: OAFVC accepts online donations to support the centre's mission of helping entrepreneurs and farmers bring more Ontario-made products to market.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

OAFVC is a purpose-built, shared-use food manufacturing facility that rents production space, equipment, and storage to food entrepreneurs, farmers, and restaurants under a "pay to play" model. The centre also provides experienced Food Service Worker production support, ATP-tested cleaning services, multi-temperature storage, and shipping/receiving infrastructure to help clients scale products from small batches to commercial distribution.

Product overview

The Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre (OAFVC) is a purpose-built shared-use food manufacturing facility that operates as a launchpad for food entrepreneurs and farmers. The centre offers an integrated suite of services: Clean Space Services (professionally cleaned processing areas with ATP verification), Production Assistance (skilled Food Service Workers supporting scaling from small batches to 200kg+ per shift), Food Processing Equipment (industrial equipment including tempering rooms and mechanical fillers), Food-Safe Storage (ambient, chilled, and frozen on-site storage), and Shipping/Receiving Services (dock facilities for distribution scaling). Clients join a Food Entrepreneur Network that provides peer support and industry connections. The facility focuses on plant-based products, sustainable foods, and dairy innovation, with an average of 85 different products brought to market each year. Sani Marc provides NSF-approved cleaning products as a supplier partner.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Small Batch Food Manufacturing (Production Space Rental) Shared-use food manufacturing facility providing production space on a shift basis for food entrepreneurs and farmers to scale products from small batches to commercial sale. Includes access to pre-sanitized dedicated rooms, professional equipment, and Food Service Worker support under a 'pay to play' model.
• Clean Space Services Professionally cleaned and pre-sanitized processing areas before each client shift, using NSF-approved Sani Marc products and procedures. Includes ATP (adenosine triphosphate) swabbing of food contact surfaces to verify cleaning effectiveness, with results reported to clients and used to verify allergen-free product cleaning.
• Production Assistance (Food Service Worker Support) Experienced Food Service Workers provide hands-on production support during client shifts, helping clients achieve medium- and large-scale growth through trial shifts, process innovation, bottleneck streamlining, and staff guidance for first-time equipment users.
• Food Processing Equipment Access Client access to a wide range of industrial food manufacturing equipment, including tempering rooms, mechanical fillers, and production lines. Staff guidance is available for first-time users operating the equipment.
• Food-Safe Storage (Dry, Cold, Frozen) On-site pallet-based dry, cold, and frozen storage for client ingredients, packaging, and finished products. Flexible monthly billing with no long-term contracts required, suiting local farmers and farm markets with seasonal needs.
• Shipping and Receiving Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 74 food businesses launched and nearly 200 products to market (2018-2020)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Sani MarccoreOthersSani Marc is OAFVC's cleaning products partner, providing NSF-approved cleaning products and procedures. The OAFVC team follows Sani Marc's regime to ensure every production shift starts in a clean, food-safe space. This partnership is fundamental to the facility's food safety commitment.
• Dairy Farmers of Ontario (DFO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOAFVC recently began working with clients in partnership with Dairy Farmers of Ontario to produce innovative dairy products. This partnership extends the facility's capabilities beyond plant-based foods into dairy innovation.
• Northumberland County Economic DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed the Regional Local Food Business Retention and Expansion project that identified the need for a shared-use food manufacturing facility. Northumberland County built OAFVC in response to those recommendations and continues to operate the facility.
• Nine-Jurisdiction PartnershipminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional project led by Northumberland County Economic Development in partnership with nine jurisdictions: Kawartha Lakes, Prince Edward County, Belleville, Quinte West, and the Counties of Northumberland, Peterborough, Hastings, Lennox and Addington, and Frontenac. Nearly 400 local food businesses participated in interviews and surveys.
• Northumberland Federation of Agriculture (NFA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNFA donated to the beginnings of OAFVC and the Board of Directors meet monthly at the OAFVC board room. NFA serves as ambassadors for agriculture and refers member farmers and food entrepreneurs to the facility.
• Ontario Federation of AgricultureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNFA works in partnership with the Ontario Federation of Agriculture on behalf of local members. OFA provides support services and resources that complement OAFVC's mission.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Food Starter: Toronto-based food business incubator that provides shared commercial kitchen space, mentorship, and product-development support to food entrepreneurs in Ontario. Operates the same shared-use model as OAFVC, serving start-ups and small food brands in the same geography.
• University of Guelph Food Innovation Centre: Ontario-based food product development center offering food processing, sensory analysis, and commercialization services to food businesses. Comparable contract/incubation food-manufacturing services in the same province.
• Kitchen United: US-based operator of shared commercial kitchen facilities serving restaurant operators and food entrepreneurs. Runs a multi-site shared-kitchen network analogous to OAFVC's single-site shared-use facility.
• CloudKitchens: Operator of shared commercial kitchen infrastructure designed for delivery-oriented food businesses. While more focused on ghost-kitchen/restaurant delivery use cases, the underlying shared-use facility model overlaps with OAFVC's.
• The Hatchery Chicago: Chicago-based food and beverage business incubator providing shared kitchen access, technical assistance, and business support to food entrepreneurs. Directly comparable incubator model in a larger urban market.
• Local Food Hub: Non-profit food hub based in Charlottesville, Virginia that supports local farmers and food producers with processing, storage, and distribution services. Comparable mission-driven shared-infrastructure model serving small food producers.
• George Brown College Food Innovation and Research Studio: Toronto-based food innovation center providing commercial kitchen and food-processing facilities to food entrepreneurs, students, and small businesses. Comparable shared-use manufacturing and training mandate in the same Canadian market.
• Alberta Food Processing Development Centre: Alberta-based food processing facility offering commercial processing services, equipment access, and product development to food businesses. Same shared-infrastructure food-manufacturing model in a different Canadian province.
• BC Food Hub Network: Government-backed network of shared-use food processing facilities across British Columbia supporting food entrepreneurs and processors. Operates the same public-sector hub model as OAFVC in a different Canadian province.

Broad incumbents

• Northwest Food Hub Network: Network of regional food hubs across the US Pacific Northwest providing aggregation, processing, storage, and distribution infrastructure to farmers and food producers. Broader multi-site food-hub model with comparable shared-infrastructure mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/venturecentre
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/venturecentre

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ontario Agri-Food Venture Centre