b'PLANT BREEDING & GENETICS 2021100% FOCUSED ON CANOLAThis years Plant Breeding and Genetics Award winner says learning to put aside distractions has been the key to a successful career in plant breeding.Marc ZienkiewiczOVER A CAREER that has spanned threestarted taking plant breeding courses, I decades, Van Ripley of Turtleford,just found it extremely fascinating that Sask., has been intent on pioneer- you could actually select material and ing major improvements in one ofmake crosses between individual plants Canadas signature cropscanola. and develop something totally new.Currently the North AmericanHis academic career began in the canola R&D lead for Nuseed, he has1980s at the University of Guelph, built a canola hybrid strategy andwhich is where he stayed right up until pipeline to fit the needs of Canadiancompleting his PhD in crop breeding farmers and industry. In 2020,in 1995 under the supervision of Wally Nuseed was able to launch the firstBeversdorf. It was Beversdorf who in a series of canola products intorecruited the young Ripley to work the Canadian market thanks in nowith him on what would be the usher-small part to Ripleys vast knowledgeing in of a new era for canola.of canola. He has also developed aWhile working on my PhD, pol-pipeline of Nuseed canola productslination control systems were just with multiple oil profiles to meet thecoming into play. Wally was the chair-needs of industry and growers. man of the universitys crop science Thats just the tip of the icebergdepartment at that time, and he was for the 59-year-old, whose colleaguesdoing a lot of work on pollination con-consider him a visionary who helpedtrol systems, which ultimately allowed make canola what it is today us to produce canola hybrids, Ripley one of Canadas top crops grownrecalls. by 43,000 Canadian farmers whoHe was doing some work with a produce about 20 million tonnes ofsmall company at that time called Plant canola annually, according to CanolaGenetics Systems, or PGS, which was Council of Canada statistics. developing the LibertyLink system. It Ripleys love of plant breedingwas fascinating because not only were began in childhood, spending timewe working on the new pollination on his grandparents Nova Scotiacontrol systems and trying to decide farm and gardening with his parents. which one would work best for canola I was eight or 10 or somethinglong-term, but then also thinking about like that, and I remember collect- how to transition an open pollinated ing seeds from our garden. We livedcrop to a hybrid crop. in the country at that time, and I remember just collecting seeds andNew Ways of Thinkingsaying to my parents that I was goingDoing that required a new way of to keep them so we could use themthinking about plant breeding, Ripley next year. I was just so thrilled withsays.the idea that I could just keep theseAs excited as Ripley was aboutVan Ripley, winnerseeds and then I could grow themworking with canola, he was also aof the 2021 Canadian again next year, Ripley says.pragmatist.Plant Breeding &Once I got into university and IAs a young plant breeder at thatGenetics Award.12GERMINATION.CAMARCH 2021'