I
Spirulina
Arthrospira platensis: 60 to 70% protein by dry weight, complete amino profile, plus phycocyanin, a rare natural blue pigment chefs pay a premium for. NASA-tier nutrition. Zero certified fresh local supply in Manitoba today.
Viridian BotanicalsInvestor & Partner Brief · 2026
Viridian
Botanicals
A youth-owned organic controlled environment agriculture operation growing fresh spirulina, culinary herbs, and edible flowers year-round in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Better for all.
Founder
Ranveer Singh Gill · Age 14
Winnipeg, Manitoba · Treaty One Land
Contact
ranveergreenhouse@outlook.com
431-777-4523
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals01 · The Idea
A market Manitoba has never been served.
Viridian Botanicals supplies local restaurants and health food stores with consistent, locally grown specialty produce that does not currently exist anywhere in this market. Built on a foundation of community impact, funded through Canadian government grants, and committed from day one to giving back to the land we grow on.
Year-round
Controlled environment
3 lines
Spirulina · Herbs · Flowers
30%
Proceeds pledged back
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals02 · Market Momentum
The world is moving this way, and the numbers prove it.
In May 2026, Oishii closed a $150M Series C, bringing total raised to $370M. Its strategy: a technically demanding, locally irreplaceable crop, priced at a premium, on a supply chain no one else built. SPARX, Nomura Real Estate, and Mizuho called it the blueprint for indoor vertical farming's next phase.
Fieldless Farms (Cornwall, ON) sells out 2 to 5 times faster than before and nearly hit $2.2M in a single crowdfunding month. A Calgary container farm reports premium restaurant pricing fully offsets energy costs.
“Demand is outstripping supply. Once a restaurant tastes the quality, they buy for life.”
$370M
Oishii total raised
37%+
Specialty share, greenhouse
$540M
Edible flowers by 2030
5.15%
CAGR, edible flowers
96%
Canadians prefer CA-grown
9.7%
Local premium tolerance
Viridian Botanicals is not chasing a trend. It is entering a market the world's most sophisticated agricultural investors are now calling inevitable, before anyone else in Manitoba has done it.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals03 · The Gap
The gap is real. We confirmed it in person.
Fresh spirulina does not exist as a local product in Winnipeg. A visit to Vita Health confirmed shelves of imported powders and pills: no fresh supplier, no local grower, no alternative in the province.
At Peasant Cookery, the chef said in person of local sourcing: “this is something we need more of.” Edible flowers arrive days old from out-of-province. No local year-round competitor exists.
Live consumer poll distributed across 846 LinkedIn connections, the North Forge network, and direct restaurant contacts (n=16):
Yes-respondents selecting Herbs87.5%
Yes-respondents selecting Spirulina62.5%
Yes-respondents selecting Edible Flowers50%
Willingness to pay, Spirulina$10 to $30
Willingness to pay, Herbs$3 to $8+
$34.5M → $122.5M
Canada spirulina, 2024 to 2035
12.2%
CAGR
$50 to $60/lb
Local basil, off-season
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals04 · The Products
Three product lines. One controlled environment.
II
Culinary Herbs
Basil, mint, cilantro. Seed to harvest in 3 to 4 weeks. Subscription delivery is the highest-reliability revenue structure available to a small grower. Manitoba winters hand us the market exclusively.
III
Edible Flowers
Pansies, borage, chamomile. A $420M global market growing 5.15% annually. Premium pricing from chef-driven establishments with no local fresh alternative.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals05 · The Build
A real, winter-rated CEA facility: engineered, not improvised.
20×24 ft winter-rated greenhouse$20K to $30K
HVAC, humidity, CO₂ control$15K to $25K
Electrical & full-spectrum LED$8K to $12K
Plumbing & water systems$5K to $8K
Spirulina raceway pond (200 ft²)$3K to $6K
4× Harvest Today walls (Winnipeg-made)$8K to $14K
Fit-out, fixtures, contingency$6K to $10K
Total build$65K to $105K
4 Harvest Today walls produce 2,880 plants simultaneously across herbs and edible flowers, circulating water and nutrients at roughly 15¢/hr under Manitoba Hydro rates. Raceway spirulina uses 97% less water than conventional agriculture.
After Grants
$16,250 to $26,250
Out-of-pocket, with SCAP applied and Farm Credit Canada plus Farm Lending Canada in active discussion.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals06 · The Numbers
A documented benchmark. A superior starting position.
Cal's Crops, Winnipeg's leading local vertical farm, generates approximately $100,000/yr growing microgreens, a lower-margin product than ours. They started with $4,000 and no outside funding.
Viridian launches with active grant applications, direct equipment supplier relationships, a biosystems engineer as a consultant, two lenders competing for the file, and documented restaurant demand before a single plant has been grown.
The Oishii principle: difficulty creates a moat. Fresh spirulina is the hardest product in Winnipeg's local food market to produce. Once operational, Viridian is not a supplier; it is the only supplier.
Revenue Trajectory
Spirulina, 200 ft² pond @ $40/lb≈ $520/mo floor
Herbs + flowers (2,880 × 13 cycles)$1.5K to $3K/mo
Year 1 target$50K to $70K
Year 2 to 3 target$100K to $150K
Grounded in verified revenue of a comparable Winnipeg operation, adjusted upward for higher-margin crops and a stronger network.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals07 · Traction
What has already happened, before a single seed.
Manitoba's government called us.
Written reply from ADM Robert Ermel (Manitoba Agriculture), CC'd to Premier Kinew and Minister Kostyshyn. Minister Jamie Moses called personally. Food Matters Manitoba and 4-H Manitoba recommended as funding pathways.
Two lenders competing.
SCAP Research & Innovation LOI submitted April 20, 2026 ($22,500 of $30,000). Farm Credit Canada agent assigned and active. Farm Lending Canada introduced personally by William Aitken.
Province-leading advisors.
William Aitken (CEO, Harvest Today Canada). Trina Semenchuk, MSc Biosystems Eng., U of M. James Battershill (founder, Juno Food Labs; former GM, Keystone Agricultural Producers). Alex Kohut (Cal's Crops).
Restaurants engaging.
13 chef-driven restaurants contacted. Sous Sol ops mgr: call scheduled. Nonsuch head chef replied within a day. Block & Blade routed to culinary team. Peasant Cookery confirmed insufficient local supply.
North Forge Founders Program.
Accepted into one of Winnipeg's premier accelerators. Active customer discovery, problem interviews, and value-prop modules with real Winnipeg food businesses.
Media came to us.
Two podcasts reached out unprompted, including On Air With Priyanka. Neither was solicited.
Food Matters Manitoba partnership.
Formal proposal submitted covering the 30% giving pledge, joint grants, community supply, speaking, and media collaboration. Under executive review.
Built, deployed, shipped.
Logo, printed cards, live branded site, Supabase-backed consumer poll, 846 LinkedIn connections. All built by a 14-year-old founder.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals08 · The Mission
30% of all proceeds. In perpetuity.
30% of all proceeds go to Food Matters Manitoba, a Winnipeg-based Indigenous food sovereignty organization and registered charity. This is not a marketing line. It is a non-negotiable founding commitment written into this business before a single dollar has been made.
Food Matters Manitoba
Registration № 83097 8169 RR0001
422 Notre Dame Avenue, Winnipeg
204-943-0822
Viridian grows on Treaty One Land.
It will give back to the people of that land.
It will give back to the people of that land.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523
Viridian Botanicals09 · The Plan & The Ask
What we need now.
Go-to-Market
- STAGE 1Local restaurants
Direct weekly subscription supply to Winnipeg's chef-driven independent dining scene. Premium pricing justified by local scarcity and freshness.
- STAGE 2Markets & health stores
Farmers markets and health food retailers, including Vita Health (Operations Manager interest noted pending launch).
- STAGE 3Online & institutional
Online sales, broader Manitoba distribution, and a planned University of Winnipeg campus supply partnership.
The Ask
One professional architectural design attached to a grant application changes everything. SCAP, the Growing Greenhouses Program (50/50 cost share up to $4M), AgriInnovate, and the Clean Growth Program all increase in credibility and funding potential with a fully specified facility plan attached. ADM Ermel has indicated in writing that professional project documentation strengthens grant eligibility significantly.
We are not asking for help starting. We are asking for the design that converts everything we have already built into a fundable, buildable, unstoppable facility.
We have the vision. And considerably more than nothing else.
Ranveer Singh Gill · Viridian Botanicals · Treaty One Landranveergreenhouse@outlook.com · 431-777-4523