Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 5214 Szego and Eros, knew there were bigger opportunities. “Tib Szego was one of the most vision- ary people,” says Martin Pick. “He established the idea of proprietary vari- eties in North America, and operated the first private plant breeding program in Canada.” Eros had similar thoughts. “My dad believed that the future was in varie- ties,” Gabe Eros says of his father John. “Varieties allowed companies to com- pete based on quality and attributes, rather than just on price.” After graduating from the University of Guelph and working for his dad unload- ing trucks in the warehouse; along with encouragement from his father, Gabe brought in varieties from Sweden, Denmark, Germany and France — first under multiplication contracts, and then to test for suitability for Canada. Varieties also became important in Western Canada in the early 1960s. Richardson says: “The introduction of varieties developed by the federal department of agriculture, like Boreal creeping red fescue and Climax timothy, made the Peace River area one of the most important seed production areas in Canada; and it still is today.” Certified seed became an important part of the forage seed sector in the 1960s. According to Pick, before certification, the seed trade was a commodity busi- ness. However, once varieties became known, farmers wanted them, and cer- tification assured that they were getting the varieties they wanted. Trait Stewardship Responsibilities Notice to Farmers Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology- Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. These products have been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from these products can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for these products. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Excellence Through Stewardship. ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW PESTICIDE LABEL DIRECTIONS. Roundup Ready® technology contains genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate, an active ingredient in Roundup® brand agricultural herbicides. Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans contain genes that confer tolerance to glyphosate and dicamba. Agricultural herbicides containing glyphosate will kill crops that are not tolerant to glyphosate, and those containing dicamba will kill crops that are not tolerant to dicamba. Contact your Monsanto dealer or call the Monsanto technical support line at 1-800-667-4944 for recommended Roundup Ready® Xtend Crop System weed control programs. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for canola contains the active ingredients difenoconazole, metalaxyl (M and S isomers), fludioxonil and thiamethoxam. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for canola plus Vibrance® is a combination of two separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients difenoconazole, metalaxyl (M and S isomers), fludioxonil, thiamethoxam, and sedaxane. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for corn (fungicides and insecticide) is a combination of four separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, and clothianidin. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for corn (fungicides only) is a combination of three separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin and ipconazole. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for corn with Poncho® /VoTivo™ (fungicides, insecticide and nematicide) is a combination of five separate individually-registered products, which together contain the active ingredients metalaxyl, trifloxystrobin, ipconazole, clothianidin and Bacillus firmus strain I-1582. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for soybeans (fungicides and insecticide) is a combination of four separate individually registered products, which together contain the active ingredients fluxapyroxad, pyraclostrobin, metalaxyl and imidacloprid. Acceleron® seed applied solutions for soybeans (fungicides only) is a combination of three separate individually registered products, which together contain the active ingredients fluxapyroxad, pyraclostrobin and metalaxyl. Acceleron® , Cell-Tech™, DEKALB and Design® , DEKALB® , Genuity and Design® , Genuity® , JumpStart® , Optimize® , RIB Complete® , Roundup Ready 2 Technology and Design® , Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™, Roundup Ready 2 Yield® , Roundup Ready® , Roundup Transorb® , Roundup WeatherMAX® , Roundup Xtend™, Roundup® , SmartStax® , TagTeam® , Transorb® , VaporGrip® , VT Double PRO® , VT Triple PRO® and XtendiMax® are trademarks of Monsanto Technology LLC. Used under license. Fortenza® and Vibrance® are registered trademarks of a Syngenta group company. LibertyLink® and the Water Droplet Design are trademarks of Bayer. Used under license. Herculex® is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Used under license. Poncho® and Votivo™ are trademarks of Bayer. Used under license. ©2016 Monsanto Canada Inc. Pick says: “One of the most important developments in our sector was the implementation of seed laws in 1960 that required that seed sold by vari- ety name had to be certified. We had to deal with registered seed growers. There were only three producers of certified Climax timothy in Ontario, but there were more than 60 in the west, so Pickseed moved to Manitoba.” In the early 1960s, member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development estab- lished the OECD Seed Schemes, which prescribed the conditions for interna- tional certification of seeds. Canada joined the scheme in 1962. Canada’s certification system and the OECD Seed Schemes made it possible for for- eign forage varieties to be produced for export on significant acres. Turf Grass and Lawn Seed Turf grasses became a part of many seed businesses, mostly in Western Canada, in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Dyck says BrettYoung began buying a native grass called prairie junegrass in the late 1940s. “Junegrass grew naturally in the Interlake region of Manitoba. Farmers who were clearing land found it grow- ing in native meadows, collected the seed and came to BrettYoung to sell it. It was the dominant turf grass at the time,” he says. “However the seed from native stands was only about 60 per cent pure and only had about 60 per cent germi- nation, so by the 1980s it was mostly replaced by Kentucky bluegrass.” Kentucky bluegrass also started as a native grass. BrettYoung was a principle harvester of wild Kentucky bluegrass. It was typically 85 per cent pure and its germination was about 80 per cent but its harvest was very labour intensive. Creeping red fescue is another impor- tant grass. Before the mid 1940s, it was primarily produced in New Zealand and was only an expensive specialty item in North America. After World War II, growers began producing it in the Peace River area, and it was a tremendous suc- cess. That area continues to be unpar- alleled in the production of very high quality creeping red fescue seed. It started with early settlers and grew to be a tremendous sector for Canadian agriculture, a sector built on friendship and trust that opened domestic and international markets. Patty Townsend In 1961, Angus Richardson was in Mayerthorpe, Alta., buying seed. Photo: Angus Richardson.