Glyn Chancey – 2023 Honorary Life Award Recipient

Glyn Chancey was the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association’s Executive Director from 2015 to 2021. Before joining CSGA, Glyn led a distinguished federal public service career that spanned 30 years and four major government departments. As a trade negotiator in the 1990s, Glyn was key in introducing Plant Breeder’s Rights (PBR) to Canada. As the Director of CFIA’s Plant Production Division and later Executive Director of its Plant Health and Biosecurity Directorate in the 2000s, Glyn oversaw Canada’s seed regulatory system during an important period of industry consensus building and regulatory reform. And in the early 2010s, as a senior executive with the Treasury Board and the Privy Council Office, he led significant cross-government initiatives on regulatory burden reduction and international regulatory cooperation that benefitted, among others, the seed industry.

Glyn joined the CSGA at a critical juncture and made essential contributions to the organization’s and industry’s strategic direction, strengthened the role of the regions in CSGA governance, oversaw system modernization and service delivery improvements, and recruited and developed a team of widely respected and internationally recognized professionals. Glyn attended Mount Allison University, the University of Guelph, McGill University, and Université Laval. He is President and CEO of Benchent Inc., a firm specializing in trade and regulatory issue management.

Glyn lives in Navan, Ontario, Canada, with his wife, Lise, and has a son, Ben, in Montreal.