July 15, 2024

Celebrate 120 Years With Us

2024 is a truly special year for our Association as we celebrate our 120th anniversary. To celebrate, we’ve created a celebratory 120^th Anniversary video – we hope you enjoy it!

Since our humble beginnings in 1904, we have continuously evolved and to provide immense value to Canadian agriculture.

Our heartfelt gratitude goes to all those who came before us. Their hard work and determination have laid the strong foundation for the mission we continue to advance today. To our members, past and present – your commitment to excellence has not only shaped the landscape of Canadian agriculture but also established Canada as a global leader in seed quality, integrity, and innovation.

We are celebrating not only CSGA’s longevity but also the passion and resilience of our incredible community. We invite you to learn more about our history. With a strong 120-year foundation, we look forward to a very bright future.

Welcome and Thank You: Your CSGA Board of Directors

Congratulations to Glenn Logan, your new CSGA President. CSGA’s previous First Vice President, Glenn, lives in southern Alberta on a 116-year-old mixed farming operation. He has been a pedigreed seed grower since 1988, is a CSGA-Accredited Plot Grower, and holds his 25-year Long Service Award. Glenn brings much experience from his time on not-for-profit boards, including the Alberta Barley Commission, the Prairie Registration Recommending Committee for Grains, the Alberta-British Columbia Seed Growers’ Association, and many more.

Glenn believes that active listening is an essential leadership skill and is excited and honoured to step up and contribute more to our seed sector. As the incoming CSGA President, he aims to foster an environment where fellow Board members and others can cultivate and enhance their leadership skills. You can read more about Glenn’s vision for his presidency in this recent Seed World Canada article.

Thank You

As we welcome the new Board of Directors, we extend our deepest appreciation to each Director whose term is ending. CSGA, the seed sector and Canadian agriculture are stronger when key individuals step up to volunteer their time and share their vision, and for that, we thank you. 

Dale Connell, Outgoing President (Ontario)

As Dale moves from his role as President to Past President, we thank him for his strong leadership and dedication. We have welcomed and appreciated his commitment to open and honest discussions in any meeting. We look forward to his continued contributions in his new capacity.

Joe Rennick, Past President (Saskatchewan)

As Joe’s role as Past President comes to a close, we wish to thank him for his decades of support, advice, and leadership in numerous capacities at the national level. Joe was the Association’s President from 2020 to 2022 and was a member of the CSGA Board for 15 years. A CSGA Accredited Plot Grower, Joe also holds his 35-year Membership Long Service Award.

Laurie Wakefield, Director (Saskatchewan)

As Laurie retires as CSGA Director, we thank him for the countless hours and unwavering dedication he has invested in our Association. Laurie has made a lasting impact on our Board and has been a valued member since 2018. Laurie is a CSGA-Accredited Plot Grower and holds his 40-year Long Service Award.

Richard Brault, Director (Québec)

As Richard retires from his role as CSGA Director, we thank him for his commitment to seed production and CSGA and his dedication to serving on the Board. Richard joined the Board in 2021, has been a CSGA member for over 40 years, and is a CSGA-Accredited Plot Grower.

Thank you, gentlemen, for your years of service. Your efforts have been a source of inspiration, and we are confident that your influence will continue to resonate for years to come. We look forward to their continued support and involvement in other capacities.

At the 2024 CSGA Annual Meeting, the following individuals were elected as your Board of Directors for 2024-2025:

Your Executive Committee

• President: Glenn Logan
• First Vice President: Shannon Bieman
• Second Vice President: The incoming board will vote on this position at the next Board meeting. Election results will be announced in the September issue of Seed Scoop.
• Provincial Ministry Representative: Peter Scott
• Past President: Dale Connell

Your Directors

• Alberta-British Columbia: Lori Oatway and Chelsea Tomlinson
• Saskatchewan: Roy Klym and Ian Bodnaryk
• Manitoba: Andrew Ayre and Ryan Murray
• Ontario: Shannon Bieman and Carl Bolton
• Quebec: Marc-Antoine Paquet and Gabriel Provost

The Maritimes position remains vacant.

Your 2024-2025 Advisors are appointed by their respective provincial Ministers of Agriculture

• British Columbia: Brenna Schilds
• Alberta: Krista deMilliano
• Manitoba: Chami Amarasinghe
• Saskatchewan: Matt Struthers
• Ontario: Joanna Follings
• Quebec: Damien Chaput
• New Brunswick: Peter Scott
• Nova Scotia: Amy Sangster
• Prince Edward Island: vacant

The incoming board will vote on the Board’s Academic Advisor role at the next Board meeting. Election results will be announced in the September issue of Seed Scoop.

The expertise and experience these dedicated people bring to the table are invaluable to our Board and members. They will guide us toward continued success and help us achieve our future vision. Please visit the Board webpage to learn more about each Director.

Summary of CSGA's Annual General Meeting

Thank you to all who attended our 120^th Anniversary Annual General Meeting, held virtually on Wednesday, June 26, 2024. Over 90 people attended the meeting.

President Dale Connell opened the meeting with his president’s report and a moment of silence to acknowledge Past Presidents, honorary presidents, honorary life and Robertson Associate awards recipients and those growers who passed over the last year and are no longer with us.

The motion to approve the agenda was passed. Dale introduced the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, who spoke to the delegates via prerecorded video. The motion to approve the 2023 meeting minutes was passed.

Executive Director Doug Miller then presented his report and focused on achievements throughout the year, including SRM Leadership, digital seed tags, the #ChooseCertifiedSeed campaign, and improvements in the Associations’ Governance policies, including the renewal of the Regulatory Services Committee.

Doug then provided the CSGA Financial report, highlighting the goal of providing complete financial transparency. 2024 was another strong year for the Association – the complete Financial Statements are available here. The motion to appoint the Association’s auditors was passed.

Within the Nominations report, Dale presented the names of those nominated by their respective branches for election as Directors to the CSGA National Board and announced that the CSGA Board elected Glenn Logan as the new CSGA President. The motion to elect the directors to the Board was passed. Please see Article 2 above for more information on the CSGA Board of Directors.

The motion to adjourn the business portion of the AGM was passed.

In the Town Hall session, Dale announced that the national office had received no member proposals. Doug Miller then spoke to a presentation on the current Membership Class Consultation, which proposes to reintroduce the Affiliate and Associate membership classes. Doug outlined the Associate and Affiliate memberships, including who could join and what rights they would receive. He invited members and stakeholders to participate in the consultation, which is open until August 12. The Board will review the feedback received, and if there’s strong member support for the proposals, a Special General Meeting would be required for members to vote on the proposed changes

Dale then announced the 2025 in-person AGM, held in Victoria, BC, from July 3 to 5, 2025. More information will be available on the 2025 webpage.

After a final thanks to all our AGM sponsors, the public portion of the meeting ended, and the closed Member-to-Member session began.

Thank You, AGM Sponsors!

We wish to extend our sincerest thanks to our wonderful 2024 AGM sponsors, SeCan, 20/20 Seed Labs Inc., the Crop Development Centre at the University of Saskatchewan, SGS Canada, Farm Credit Canada, and Syngenta. 

We invite you to watch our video sponsor messages:

SeCan	Crop Development Centre	SGS Canada

We greatly appreciate all of our sponsor’s contributions to this year’s event and their ongoing support of our Association. For more information on our great sponsors, please click their logos on the CSGA AGM webpage.

Share Your Voice! Reintroducing Two Membership Classes

The deadline for you to share your thoughts on reintroducing two membership classes as part of the CSGA is approaching.

The CSGA Board of Directors has launched a consultation on the proposed reintroduction of Affiliate and Associate memberships. The goal is to engage everyone in the seed certification value chain to achieve our vision for our next-generation seed system.  This proposal is about living CSGA’s 2.0 business plan, ensuring more stakeholder engagement in Canada’s seed certification system, and working towards CSGA’s SRM vision. 

These new membership levels will:

• Increase stakeholder engagement
• Fulfill our CSGA 2.0 business plan
• Align with our SRM vision
• Improve transparency
• Allow diversity of perspective, opinion and expertise
• Welcome more stakeholders into the day-to-day seed certification system

These new membership levels will NOT:

• Change CSGA’s existing Regular Member class
• Dilute Regular Membership level
• Complicate voting processes
• Impact the trusted grower model upon which CSGA’s seed crop certification model is based

We value your feedback and seek your opinion on this membership class proposal and proposed housekeeping By-law amendments to clarify current ambiguities and incorporate best governance practices. Learn more here and take the survey to help shape the future of CSGA. The consultation is open until August 12, 2024.

Key Information

• Exploring Membership Classes – Discussion Document
• FAQs: Proposal for Introducing Affiliate and Associate Membership Types
• Proposed By-law Changes

ANSWER THE SURVEY NOW

Reminders for the 2024 Crop Season

With the 2024 crop season well underway, it is time to log into SeedCert to monitor the certification of your fields.

Whether you are a seed grower or a third party, you can access copies of the applications, maps, tags, and reports generated and uploaded for your crops and follow their certification progress through the season. Through SeedCert, you can maintain your CSGA accounts from anywhere, anytime – with near real-time information on your 2024 Seed Crop Certification status.

Please read the Application Support Document, which provides instructions for applying for seed crop certification and membership and highlights changes for the 2024 crop season.

Remember, before you harvest, check the status of your crops to ensure that all is well and that a certificate has been issued! An uninspected harvested crop is an uncertified seed crop. Only CSGA will provide the final certification decision.

Of course, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact us by email or at 613.236.0497 ext. 8803. We are always happy to help.

Opt-In! Seed Guide Listings and Consent to Share Information

Want to get your production information included in the provincial Seed Guides? Let us know! To publish pedigreed seed guide listings in CSGA’s national online Pedigreed Seed Locator and the Provincial Seed Guide magazines and websites, certain personal and crop production information is shared with third parties to facilitate public distribution.

Before we can publish, growers and crop certificate assignees must provide consent. Through the Membership Application/Renewal Form, they can customize the information shared with these third parties. Applicants can also review, confirm, and adjust their consent in SeedCert under “My Account”.

Please provide your consent before the following deadline dates to be included in the provincial Seed Guide magazines and website.

• Alberta and British Columbia: September 4, 2024
• Manitoba: September 30, 2024
• Saskatchewan: October 15, 2024
• Ontario: October 31, 2024

The growers’ production, or the assigned production, will not be included in the Seed Guides if we don’t receive the grower’s membership application or if you don’t provide consent to share personal and crop production information by the published deadline dates.

Invest in Yourself and Your Brand with the CSGA ASG Designation

As the market gears up for late fall and next winter’s seed purchases, now is the time to elevate your brand and position yourself as a leader in the marketplace with the CSGA Accredited Seed Grower (ASG) designation.

CSGA Learn: Your Path to Leadership

To help you achieve this prestigious designation, CSGA Learn offers the Experienced Seed Grower Program, a seven-course program tailored specifically for experienced seed growers. This program is designed to fit seamlessly into your busy schedule while providing you with the tools and knowledge needed to excel.

Complete this program and two years of successful seed crop production to earn the CSGA Accredited Seed Grower (ASG) designation. This accolade allows you to proudly demonstrate your expertise, knowledge, and unwavering commitment to pedigreed seed production.

Enroll Today
Lead the Way in Certified Seed Excellence!

Why Your ASG Designation Matters

The CSGA Accredited Seed Grower (ASG) designation is more than just a title; it is a mark of excellence and professionalism. It signifies that you possess advanced knowledge, skills, and experience in seed production, setting you apart from your competitors. As the demand for high-quality seeds increases, buyers are looking for trusted, certified growers who can guarantee superior products. The ASG designation gives you that edge.

Benefits of Your CSGA ASG Designation

• Enhanced Credibility: The ASG designation is a testament to your commitment to quality and excellence in seed production.
• Increased Marketability: Stand out to buyers looking for reliable, certified seed growers for their late fall purchases.
• Professional Development: Stay ahead of industry trends and continuously improve your skills and knowledge.

As a CSGA-Accredited Seed Grower, you will receive a digital badge to help you demonstrate your achievement and commitment to seed quality to prospective clients or seed companies. Add your badge to your email signature, website, or social media accounts to elevate your brand and set yourself apart.

CSGA Learn helps everyone in seed production understand what goes into the Certified seed blue tag. Our online learning material helps to ensure the seed sector is equipped with people with the right skill sets and knowledge needed for a next-generation seed system. With ten courses and four programs, CSGA Learn can help you stand out in the modern marketplace and take your seed skills and businesses to the next level. If you have any questions, please reach out via email or phone 613.236.0497 ext. 229.

Congratulations Dr. Bruce Coulman!

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Bruce Coulman on his upcoming induction into the Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame. This prestigious honour is a testament to his exceptional contributions and enduring impact on the agricultural community in Canada.

Dr. Coulman is a long-standing member of the CSGA Plant Breeder Committee. His 40+ year career in forage crop research marks his dedication to excellence and passion for agriculture. Read more about Dr. Coulman’s accomplishments here.