People News
Maizex Seeds has promoted two key team members, Ron Hathaway and Shane Jantzi. As the company’s new director of marketing, Hathway will focus on increasing the Maizex brand’s footprint by improving distribution and market coverage. Jantzi has been promoted to sales manager for Ontario and Western Canada, and will be responsible for the guidance of the company’s district sales managers and the Maizex dealers they support.
Canterra Seeds has announced that Duane Ransome has taken on the role of oilseeds production manager. Ransome brings a high level of experience to the Canterra team, having spent nearly 15 years with Agricore United and Viterra in various roles. Ransome will oversee the production, processing and logistics for the company’s elite line of canola hybrids, as well as Agrisoma Bioscience’s Resonance carinata.
The Canola Council of Canada has announced the hiring of Bruce Jowett as the CCC’s new vice-president of market development. Jowett comes to the CCC from Cargill AgHorizons, where he was business unit marketing manager. Prior to Cargill, Jowett worked in marketing for United Grain Growers and Cyanamid Canada in Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario.
Syngenta Canada Inc. has appointed Jon Habok to the role of product lead for cereal seed and herbicides for Canada. Habok has a long career in agriculture, working in various roles within agribusiness before joining Syngenta Canada as a territory manager in 2007. In 2010, Habok assumed the role of customer marketing manager, supporting the western Canadian business and, in July 2011, he transitioned to a national role of asset lead for cereal herbicides.
Genome Prairie has appointed Chris Barker as chief scientific officer. Barker will be responsible for the organization’s strategic research and partnership agenda and will co-ordinate the development and management of Genome Prairie’s collaborative research initiatives. Barker joined Genome Prairie in 2006 as a project manager and has since managed multiple Genome Canada-funded research programs. Based in Saskatoon, Barker will work in close collaboration with stakeholders from across Manitoba and Saskatchewan as well as the Canadian Genomics Enterprise.
Agronomix Software has announced that Tariq Mahmood has joined the company as a software specialist in plant breeding. Mahmood, a former maize breeder with DuPont Pioneer Hi-Bred International, is named in nine patents for Pioneer Hi-Bred maize hybrids as well as the release of a hemp variety. With experience in the breeding of maize, hemp, apple, mustard and canola, Mahmood strengthens Agronomix Software’s support team.
The Canada Grains Council has announced the appointment of Richard Phillips as its new president. A third-generation seed grower/operator from Tisdale, Sask., Phillips brings many years of experience in the grain sector to the CGC. In addition to his current position as executive director of the Grain Growers of Canada, Richard has held various positions with the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance, United Grain Growers, Canola Council of Canada and the CGC, where he currently serves on the board of directors.
FP Genetics has hired Tim Graham as vice-president of production and sales. Graham will have direct responsibility to develop markets for FP Genetics’ products and will supervise the seed portfolio and sales area. Graham, who has enjoyed working in the agriculture industry throughout his entire career, says he believes that success starts with seed.
The Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association board has elected Levi Wood as its new president. Wood replaces Kevin Bender, who announced he was stepping down as president in January. Bender remains on the board as a director. The WCWGA will continue to work on policy issues to enhance the prosperity of prairie grain farmers, including work to create a more attractive investment climate, further Canadian Grain Commission reforms, and develop trade agreements and a science-based regulatory approval system for seed and other farm inputs.
Product News
Monsanto Company has received full regulatory approval in Canada for Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans, the industry’s first biotech product with herbicide tolerance to both glyphosate and dicamba. This new soybean product will be a component of the new Roundup Ready Xtend Crop System, providing soybean growers with greater flexibility in weed control to help maximize yield potential. Pending key global import and regulatory approvals, Monsanto anticipates commercial release for the 2014 growing season.
Bayer CropScience and Monsanto Company have entered into a series of licensing agreements for next-generation and enabling technologies that will provide new options and choices for farmers. Monsanto will provide Bayer with a royalty-bearing license to Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Yield and Genuity RR2 Xtend technology in soybeans in the United States and Canada. Bayer has also been granted stacking-rights under certain conditions. Under the agreements, Bayer will grant Monsanto licenses to evaluate technologies for corn rootworm control and herbicide tolerance as options for Monsanto’s future pipeline development work.
Business News
Ceres Global Ag Corp. plans to develop a commodity logistics hub in Northgate, Sask., connected to BNSF Railway’s network in the United States. Ceres has purchased 1,500 acres of land in Northgate for the new hub, which will include two high-efficiency rail loops, each capable of handling up to 120 railcars. One loop will be dedicated to a grain handling and shipping facility, and the other for transloading and shipping oil. Construction is slated to begin this spring, with initial grain and oil shipments expected later in the year. The facility is to be built over three years and is designed to handle up to 40 million bushels of grain annually and 70,000 barrels of oil per day.
Canola processor Richardson Oilseed Ltd. plans to double the capacity of its plant in Lethbridge, Alta., to meet growing global demand. The Winnipeg-based company says the expansion will improve the plant’s efficiency by upgrading technology and increasing automation. Currently, Richardson processes about 1,200 tonnes of canola daily or 410,000 tonnes per year out of its Lethbridge plant. Construction is slated to begin early next year and be completed by the end of 2015.
Agrisoma Biosciences Inc. and PGF Biofuels Inc. have entered into a long-term strategic agreement. PGF is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paterson GlobalFoods Inc., owner of Paterson Grain. The new long-term agreement appoints PGF as Agrisoma’s exclusive partner for Resonance carinata, a non-food oilseed crop, in North America and Australia. The agreement also establishes a framework through which PGF and Agrisoma will co-ordinate expansion into additional regions. Under the original agreement in 2012, Paterson was the exclusive contracting partner for the production of Resonance in Western Canada.
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