INTERNATIONAL EDITION 2026  SEEDWORLD.COM /  39
“Working with SeCan has been an 
absolute game-changer,” Eskandari says. 
“It’s like having an ally who is as invested 
in the future of farming as I am.”
Eskandari’s team is now applying artifi­
cial intelligence and drone-based high-
throughput phenotyping to predict yield 
and quality earlier in the breeding cycle.
“Breeding is always a gamble,” he says. 
“We start with 50,000 single plants and 
end up with a handful of advanced lines. 
Somewhere along the way, we’re bound 
to miss potential winners. Drone hyper­
spectral imaging and AI give us better 
indicators of yield and quality throughout 
the season. It’s about improving accuracy, 
not replacing field testing.”
SeCan’s backing has allowed him to 
experiment without fear. “As a breeder, 
I can’t be an expert in everything — AI, 
drones, statistics. What I can do is identify 
tools with potential and surround myself 
with bright graduate students. Having 
SeCan behind me makes that possible.”
Made in Canada, For Canada
Across Reid, Hooyer, Downey, 
VanderLoo, Rajcan, and Eskandari, 
one phrase surfaces again and again: 
Made in Canada. It’s literally become a 
slogan for SeCan in recent months, 
emblazoned on its product guides, 
website, social media accounts, 
ballcaps and t-shirts.
“Traits like herbicide tolerance will 
always be global,” Reid says. “But the 
genetics that carry those traits — those 
need to be tailored to Canadian soils, 
Canadian climates, Canadian markets. 
That’s where we can compete.”
Hooyer agrees: “I’ve seen products 
that thrive in Canada but flop in the 
U.S. Our focus has to be on breeding 
here, for here. That’s how we keep 
independent seed businesses strong 
and our food system resilient.”
Downey says: “We talk about steel 
as critical to national security. But 
genetics? They’re the foundation of our 
food supply. Without control over that, 
everything else falls apart.”
The Next 50 Years
Reid sees SeCan as the bridge that 
ensures Canada has both strong public 
programs and robust private partners. 
“We may need entirely new institutions 
that don’t exist yet — something lean, 
efficient, and inclusive — where govern­
ment, industry, and producer groups all 
The SeCan team and its members represent Canada’s largest supplier of certified seed, taking the form of a private, 
not-for-profit corporation. 
come together.”
Hooyer imagines deeper integration 
too — linking breeding with processing 
and value-added markets. “Instead of 
outsourcing, keep it local. Breeding, 
processing, innovation — it all 
strengthens Canadian businesses 
end-to-end.”
Downey’s advice stays pragmatic: 
think in realistic time increments, stack 
the traits, and don’t break what works.
For VanderLoo, the test will be 
whether Canada can keep building 
premiums into its crops. “Food 
companies are saying, ‘We need protein. 
We need flavor. We need function.’ 
Genetics is where it starts. SeCan helps 
make sure Canada can answer that call.”
Rajcan, ever the breeder, frames the 
work as a marathon: “It takes a decade 
to deliver a variety. But if SeCan keeps 
building bridges between breeders, seed 
companies and farmers, Canada will still 
be leading 50 years from now.”
And Eskandari, already leaning into 
the future, puts it simply: “Breeding isn’t 
just about today’s cultivars. It’s about 
giving the next generation the tools and 
populations they’ll need to succeed. 
With SeCan, we can do that.” SW

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