Nunavut Farms: Agriculture History, How Food Projects Make Money and Strategy

Guide updated November 2026

Nunavut farms, in the usual sense of the word, do not exist: Statistics Canada's 2021 Census of Agriculture states that no farms were reported in Nunavut. Food production in the territory instead takes the form of container hydroponics, community greenhouses and, above all, the harvesting of country food, and this guide is honest about that very small scale while focusing on what is real.

Agriculture in Nunavut: A Short History

Nunavut has no tradition of crop or livestock farming in the southern sense. Inuit food systems are built on harvesting country food from the land, sea and ice, and the Nunavut Food Security Coalition lists niqainnait, or country food, as a core part of its work. Imported store food, flown or shipped in at high cost, sits beside it. Statistics Canada's 2021 report confirms the result: no farms were reported in Nunavut.

Local growing is a recent addition. The Iqaluit Greenhouse has operated since 2007 as a community project and a model for other northern communities. In 2017 the Growcer, a group that grew out of a University of Ottawa student venture, proposed container hydroponic farms for Iqaluit, and Nunavut News reported that the Government of Nunavut's Economic Development and Transportation department had approved $100,000 to start the project. Green Iglu, according to the coalition, runs hydroponic dome projects in Naujaat and Arviat. In Gjoa Haven the Naurvik project began growing in October 2019 with the Arctic Research Foundation, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the National Research Council and the Canadian Space Agency.

How Farms in Nunavut Make Money

Public funding is the foundation

Nearly every documented Nunavut growing project has relied on public money. The Government of Nunavut contributed to the Iqaluit container farm, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's AgriScience Program lists a $749,705 contribution to the Arctic Research Foundation for Northern Food Production Systems at Naurvik, running to March 2028. Treat any plan that depends on selling produce alone with caution.

Local sales and donations

The Growcer told Nunavut News that one container unit can produce 12,000 to 15,000 pounds of produce a year, enough for about 110 people to eat five servings a day. Elsewhere in the North, container operators sell most of their greens through the local store and donate the rest. At Naurvik, produce goes to elders, search and rescue teams and people in need.

Training, jobs and community enterprise

Container farms create local jobs and training in hydroponics and controlled-environment systems. Community enterprises such as Arctic Fresh in Iglulik, which began as a store selling groceries at a reasonable cost, show that retail and food projects can anchor local employment alongside growing.

Agriculture Strategy for Nunavut Farms

Soils, water and climate

Soil-based farming is not realistic across most of Nunavut: permafrost, thin soils and a very short season dominate. Growing is done indoors in insulated containers or greenhouses with artificial light, nutrient solution and controlled air. The Growcer told Nunavut News that root crops like carrots and potatoes cannot be grown in its system, nor can tall plants, and about 40 of roughly 100 candidate crops had been tested. Plan for greens, herbs and small fruiting plants, and test crops in your own system before committing.

Production and risk

Energy is the main risk. Nunavut News reported that electricity cost was a major concern and that an Alaskan operator paused plans to buy more units because of it. Naurvik answers this with two 6 kW wind turbines, two 7.32 kW solar arrays and batteries, which supply about 75 percent of its power in deep winter, backed by a diesel generator. Other risks are freight delays for parts, equipment failure and staff turnover, so keep spares and train more than one operator.

Technology and inputs

Container farms use LED lighting, nutrient tanks, humidity and carbon dioxide control, and monitoring. Researchers quoted by the National Observer note that repairs are hard when parts come from far away and that hydroponics mostly grows greens, so salad alone does not solve food insecurity. Match technology to what the community will actually eat and cook.

Farm Business Strategy in Nunavut

Margins and markets

Fresh produce in Nunavut sells at prices that reflect long supply lines, which is why local greens are attractive, but small volumes and power costs keep margins thin. Sell where the value is clear: community stores, schools, elders programs and food programs. Combine growing with training and food security funding rather than counting on retail margins alone.

Land, credit and succession

Community and Inuit organizations, hamlet governments and the territorial government control most land access and utility service, so start by securing a site, power and a partner organization. Funding in the sources came from the territory and from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, so contact the Government of Nunavut economic development office, Nunavut Tunngavik and regional Inuit associations, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada early. Succession here means training local operators, so that a project survives when the first staff move on.

Marketing and diversification

Link food projects to existing community priorities: school lunches such as Grown Lunches in Iqaluit, the Qajuqturvik Food Centre, and cooking and job skills programs like Niqitsialiurniq in Rankin Inlet. Pair greens with country food, since the greens are a bonus and not a replacement for traditional food or store food.

Farm Insight: Nunavut Trends to Watch

Three things to watch. First, whether Naurvik's federally funded work through 2028 produces a model other communities can copy. Second, energy: wind, solar and battery systems determine whether container farms are affordable. Third, whether projects such as Green Iglu in Naujaat and Arviat can keep operating and training local staff over many years.

The honest takeaway is that Nunavut farms are a food security and training story more than a commercial agriculture story. The strongest projects are community-led, publicly supported and modest about what they can grow.

Elite Farms and Ranches in Nunavut

These 1 operations are profiled in full, with history, how each makes money, lessons for other farms and published contact details.

Elite operations in Nunavut

• NaurvikElite operation. Gjoa Haven, Nunavut. Naurvik in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut: a community-led hydroponic food system in shipping containers. History, crops, funding, lessons for northern growers, contact.

Who to Contact in Nunavut: Agriculture Offices and Associations

• Statistics Canada: 2021 Census of Agriculture - Confirms no farms were reported in Nunavut
• Canadian Space Agency: Naurvik - Federal description of the Gjoa Haven hydroponic project
• Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada grants record - AgriScience Program contribution for Naurvik to 2028
• Arctic Research Foundation: Naurvik - Operator page with energy system, crops and community role
• Nunavut News: produce from a can - 2017 report on container farms for Iqaluit and the Government of Nunavut funding
• Nunavut Food Security Coalition - Directory of greenhouse and community food projects
• National Observer on northern hydroponics - Strengths and limits of container greenhouses in the North

Nunavut Farming FAQ

Are there farms in Nunavut?

Statistics Canada's 2021 Census of Agriculture states that no farms were reported in Nunavut. Food growing happens in container farms, greenhouses and small community projects.

What is Naurvik?

Naurvik is a community-led hydroponic food system in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut, growing since October 2019 in retrofitted shipping containers.

Can potatoes or carrots be grown in Nunavut container farms?

The Growcer told Nunavut News that root crops like carrots and potatoes cannot be grown in its container system; the focus is greens and herbs.

Who funds Nunavut growing projects?

The sources show the Government of Nunavut approving $100,000 for the Iqaluit container farm, and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada funding Naurvik through the AgriScience Program.

Nunavut farms may not appear in the census, but community-led growing is real and worth following, from Gjoa Haven to Iqaluit. Read the Naurvik profile below to see how one project works, and contact the Government of Nunavut and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada before you plan another.