b'Calvin Pitura Jennifer Mitchell FetchPitura Seeds / Pitura Seed Farms Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Domain, Man. Brandon, Man.Robertson Associate Award Honorary Life AwardYou might say it runs in the family. As aFor Jennifer Mitchell Fetch, oats are a third-generation farmer and second-gen- lifestyle. Her early days as a summer eration seed grower, Calvin Pitura farmsstudent at AAFC Research Centre helped on a century farm located in the Red Riverher realize the joy of working with cereal Valley. crops and the potential improvements Calvin became a pedigreed seed growerto be made through breeding cultivars. in 1975, obtaining his Select status a fewJennifer has been involved with the years later. Calvin is a strong advocate fordevelopment several oat milling quality the Canadian seed industry and has growncultivars for Western and Eastern Canada, the farm size to 4,000 acres of pedigreedincluding the first organically developed seed production. cultivar. She has earned her MSc degree Seeing the value of adding another cropin crop science and a PhD in flax breed-kind into rotations, Calvin and wife Barbaraing.were early adopters of soybean productionJennifer has been active in the oat in Manitoba. Through variety and agro- community, collaborating on many nomic trials, they provide advice and leader- research projects around the world, is ship to their customers and continue to bean associate editor for the Canadian an authority in soybean production today. Journal of Plant Science and has served as secretary of the Breeding and Tom Fetch Agronomy Evaluation Team of the Prairie Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Recommending Committee for Oats and Brandon, Man. Barley. Honorary Life AwardFor research scientist Tom Fetch, its allJennifer Seward about discovering new things. RecognizedManitoba Seed Growers Associationas a world authority on virulence in pop- Carman, Man.ulations of Puccinia graminis (stem rustHonorary Life Awardof wheat, barley and oat), and stem rustFor Jennifer Seward, it all began with a resistance genetics in wheat, barley andquarter. As a teenager, she was paid $1 an oat, Tom has identified several new stemhour to sit on the bean belta system rust resistance genes and their genetics ofher family added to visually inspect edible inheritance. bean lots after the European corn borer Nothing gives me a greater thrill thanworm became a production issue in the finding a source of resistance no one hasmid 1980s. She remembers thinking after seen before, he says. every 15 minutes, I just made 25 cents! His current projects include identifyingShe spent many years at AAFC Morden Barberry species in South America andand then took a canola marker identifica-their associated rust species; tracking thetion position with Zeneca. After returning movement and virulence changes in Ug99to Morden as part of the buckwheat vari-stem rust; characterizing the virulenceety research program, Jennifer was hired spectrum in Canadian populations ofas executive director for the Manitoba Puccinia graminis; and barley, oat andSeed Growers Association in March 2003.wheat cultivar development. Jennifer is passionate about the seed industry and credits that passion to the many dedicated, entrepreneurial people she has encountered working for the bet-terment of Canadas ag industry and rural communities. JULY 2020 GERMINATION.CA 31'