Four seed organizations became Seeds Canada in 2021
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
A Canadian seed organization recently celebrated a milestone.
Seeds Canada, which represents the seed sector in Canada, commemorated its first anniversary during the organization’s annual general meeting in Winnipeg, Man. in July.
In December 2020, four seed sector organizations – the Canadian Plant Technology Agency, the Commercial Seed Analysts Association of Canada, the Canadian Seed Institute and the Canadian Seed Trade Association - voted in favour of amalgamation.
Seeds Canada officially launched on Feb. 1, 2021.
Since the group’s inception, its members and staff have:
- Completed the transfer of all legacy members,
- Conducted a full membership fee review,
- Created a Seeds Canada Seal for seed analyst members, and
- Developed an organizational chart and a budgeting and financial framework.
“We are proud of our dedicated team of leaders, our highly skilled staff, and our membership for the work that has been done to get us where we are today,” Ellen Sparry, president of Seeds Canada, said in a statement.
In addition, Seeds Canada has been engaged on multiple policy issues including seed regulatory modernization and midge tolerant wheat programming.
Work on those issues will continue, said Barry Senft, executive director of Seeds Canada.
“We will continue to enhance member engagement on critical issues, work with like-minded organizations, and to develop strong relationships with policymakers over the next year,” he said in a statement.
All of the work Seeds Canada has done over the last year can be found in the organization’s 2021 Year in Review document.