Innovation Happens in the Field, Not Just the Lab

When people think about SR&ED, they often picture labs, engineers, or software teams. In reality, strong claims can also come from farms, greenhouses, recycling operations, manufacturing plants, remediation sites, and clean technology projects.

In these industries, innovation often happens under real-world conditions. Work such as reducing emissions, improving waste recovery, adapting equipment, or optimizing growing conditions may look practical, but it can still involve real technical uncertainty.

What Makes Work Eligible for SR&ED?

The key question is whether the company faced a technical uncertainty that could not be resolved through standard practice. If the work required testing, observation, adjustment, and learning to understand how a process, material, or biological system would behave, it may support an SR&ED claim.

Examples of Where SR&ED May Apply

For example, a recycling company may test new separation methods and find that moisture or contamination changes recovery results. A greenhouse may adjust climate or nutrient conditions and uncover unexpected effects on yield or quality. A clean technology company may need repeated testing to understand system performance under real operating loads.

What Strengthens a Claim

A stronger claim does more than show improvement. It explains what was uncertain, what was tested, what happened, and what was learned. Supporting records such as test results, production data, notes, design changes, and technical emails can help demonstrate that the work went beyond routine problem-solving.

Think Your Project May Qualify?

If your company is solving environmental or agricultural operating challenges, there may be SR&ED opportunities worth exploring.

Not sure if your work qualifies? We can help assess whether your project involves the kind of technical uncertainty that may support a defensible SR&ED claim.