What happens when the people closest to a problem are the furthest from the decisions meant to solve it?

In 2020, four Alberta ranching families launched Flokk Systems to tackle a critical gap in Canada’s livestock traceability system—one that regulators knew existed, but rural producers were expected to fix without the right tools. What followed was six years of effort, significant personal investment, and a direct столкновение with a system that consistently funds research over results, urban actors over rural builders, and process over productivity.

Despite developing and proving a working solution, Flokk encountered systemic barriers: limited access to funding, misaligned government priorities, and millions in public dollars flowing to initiatives unlikely to deliver real-world impact on ranches.

In this session, Mark Olson, Founder and President of Flokk Systems, breaks down what’s not working in Canada’s AgTech innovation ecosystem—and why. Drawing from lived experience, he will challenge the top-down approach to innovation and make the case for a fundamental shift: putting rural producers at the center of defining problems and delivering solutions.

This is a candid look at the urban–rural divide in innovation—and a call to rebuild a system that actually delivers results where it matters most: on the ground, on farms, and on ranches.

Presented by: Mark Olson