Overview

Thank you for your interest in the Marketing and Vineyard Improvement Programming (MVIP). This program has been well-received and is now closed.

Approved projects are required to be completed by December 31, 2020, and the deadline to submit final reports and claims is January 15, 2021.

For more information about available cost-share funding support for producers and other agri-food businesses, you may wish to  visit http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/infores.html.

MVIP supports wine grape growers by providing cost-share funding for eligible vineyard improvements to adapt to ongoing and emerging vineyard challenges, and to enable growers to produce quality grapes to meet the growing demands of Ontario wine manufacturers.

MVIP will be delivered by Agricorp, an agency of the Ontario government.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the program, you must:

• Be an active grower; only one active grower of a group of affiliated active growers may apply in a single application period (see guidelines for details)
• Have marketed wine processing grapes or late-harvest juice grapes within the past two years or have demonstrated a plan to market wine grapes within two years
• Provide and maintain a Farm Business Registration (FBR) number during the project period. If you don't have an FBR number, provide a copy of one of the following:
• FBR Exemption Certificate
• Indian Agriculture Program of Ontario (IAPO) letter
• T1 General 2018: pages 1 & 2 of your Income Tax and Benefit Return with gross farm income declared on line 168 and a copy of your Statement of Farming Activities – Farm Income & Expenses (T2042)
• Complete the annual benchmarking survey conducted as part of the Ontario government's wine and grape strategy for the year of your Offer to Proceed, if asked.
• Provide and maintain a Grape Growers of Ontario number during the project period
• Have and maintain an active premises identification number during the project period; if you do not have an active premises ID, contact the Provincial Premises Registry at: 1-888-247-4999 or visit: ontariopid.com to apply

How it works

MVIP provides grape growers with funds to help with the cost of improvements to their production of wine grapes. Participants can receive a payment for up to 35 per cent of their improvement expenses. Applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. Funding is available for 2020. Once all funds are allocated, the intake will be closed.

Individual funding is capped at $1,000 per acre under production in hybrid or vinifera wine grapes (classes 5-10f), to a maximum of $100,000, over the lifetime of the program. Once an eligible applicant has reached the $100,000 maximum, they are not eligible for future funding from this program.

See the 2020 Program Guidelines for details on what improvements are covered. 

Forms

The intake for applications for projects in the 2020 program year will open at 
10:00 a.m., March 5, 2020. Please note that applications will not be accepted prior to that time.

Agricorp will contact all applicants to inform them of their application status.

Activity	Blank form
Apply for MVIP funding.	Fillable/savable: Application Print: Application
Submit claims.	Claim Form

Publications

• Program Guidelines
  

How to participate

Submit an application

To apply for MVIP, download the application from this page or contact Agricorp to have it sent to you. Submit the completed application to Agricorp during the established intake period by email or fax.

The intake period for 2020 opens Thursday, March 5 at 10:00 a.m. and closes when funding has been fully allocated. Applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Group applications

If you wish to claim an expense for equipment or infrastructure that you share with another producer, review the Group Applications section of the guidelines.

Sign the Offer to Proceed

Successful applicants will receive an Offer to Proceed with all the documents required to participate in the program, including a Claim Form and supporting schedules. Applicants must sign and return the offer to Agricorp to confirm participation in the program.

Make a claim

Individual funding is capped at $1,000 per acre under production in hybrid or vinifera wine grapes (classes 5-10f), to a maximum of $100,000, over the lifetime of the program.

To receive a payment, participants must submit a completed MVIP Claim Form and Final Report with supporting documents to Agricorp by January 15, 2021.

Participants may submit expenses several times throughout the year and receive interim grant payments until all eligible project expenses are submitted. The first payments will be made after the annual benchmarking survey is complete.

To qualify for payment, vineyard improvements (goods and services) must be completed, and all eligible costs relating to the improvements must be incurred, within the timing outlined in your Offer to Proceed.

For 2020 funding, all eligible costs relating to the improvements must be incurred by the applicant between the date of project approval and December 31, 2020.

Expenses incurred prior to receiving an Offer to Proceed will not be reimbursed.

Assistance

Contact Agricorp if you have questions or need assistance with MVIP and program-related forms.