Dan Benoit – Prairie farming before settlement

Dan Benoit is a Red River Métis who spent most of his life living near his ancestor’s Red River Lot in St. Norbert Parish, at the family farm near Seven Sisters Falls, Manitoba, and now in the small Métis farming and fishing community of St. Laurent, Manitoba.

Dan’s kinship surnames include Lagimodiere, Riel, Nault, Genton, Lavallee, Marion, and Goulet, to name a few—all well-known street names in St Boniface, Manitoba.

Like many Métis, Dan has been raised in the traditions and culture of the Red River Métis including our special relationship and stewardship with the land and water. Dan is a farmer, hunter, trapper and fisherman, and continues to exercise these traditions and pass them along to others.

Dan formerly operated his family’s traditional, Métis mixed farm, where the animals and vegetable crops found on the farm were those that were found in the early Red River Settlement circa 1820s.

In addition to being a Métis Traditional Knowledge holder, Dan has more than 10 years post-secondary education and has various degrees, diplomas and certificates in Natural Resources Management, Ecology and Water and Wastewater Management.

Dan has worked for both industry and all three levels of government in the natural resources and environment field. He also has five years of experience as a consultant to First Nations and Northern Affairs Communities in Manitoba regarding community development, environment and new hydro-electric generation development.

Dan was also a manager for five years, in charge of the Agriculture, Environment, Hydro, and Natural Resources Portfolios at the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) supervising a multi-disciplinary province-wide team of 14 staff, including helping create the Red River Métis Laws of the Harvest. He was also part of the MNC Environment Committee.

Dan has been with the GoC for nearly 18 years, first as Senior Environmental Specialist at INAC, he then moved to AAFC for three years as the manager of the Indigenous Science Liaison Office, then was an Acting Manager at PSPC Reconciliation Directorate for a year before becoming the Director of Cultures and Protocols at the Knowledge Circle for Indigenous Inclusion at Indigenous Services Canada.

Dan is a disabled Veteran and is married and has two children.

Derek Bunkowsky is the chief grain inspector for Canada. He has experience as a grain producer for 25 years, worked for private grain companies, and has been with the Industry Services division of the Canadian Grain Commission for more than two decades. As chief grain inspector, he oversees all the Canadian Grain Commission’s grain inspection activities. Derek works closely with Grain Research Laboratory scientists, producers, grain handlers, processors, and domestic and international buyers of Canadian grain to help ensure that Canadian grain is a dependable commodity.

Dr. Bin Xiao Fu – Wheat: Canada’s longest ag success story

Dr. Bin Xiao Fu obtained his doctorate in Food and Nutritional Science from the University of Manitoba in 1996. He has been part of the Grain Research Laboratory at the Canadian Grain Commission since 2009 and is the lead scientist and manager of the Bread Wheat and Durum Research program. Dr. Fu’s research focuses on understanding how the physicochemical and biochemical properties of wheat influence its quality and the development of new techniques for evaluating wheat quality. His work provides the scientific basis for the establishment of grade tolerances for bread wheat and durum.

Elaine Sopiwnyk – Canadian Wheat: The Choice of Millers Around the World

As Vice President of Technical Services at Cereals Canada, Elaine Sopiwnyk brings over 25 years of experience to the grains sector. Her career trajectory spans from managing the Analytical Services laboratory at Cereals Canada to spearheading multi-year research projects on pulse quality. Elaine’s expertise and extensive global customer interactions make her an invaluable contributor to the Quality Evaluation Teams for the Prairie Recommending Committee for Wheat, Rye, and Triticale, as well as the Ontario Cereals Crop Committee. Her contributions to analytical methodology were recognized with the AACC International Edith Christensen award. With an M.Sc. in Foods and Nutrition, Elaine continues to shape the future of Canadian cereal quality and innovation.

Ellen pruden – Canadian Wheat: The Choice of Millers Around the World

Ellen Pruden is the vice president of communications and value chain relations for Cereals Canada. Her enthusiasm for agriculture has her constantly sharing why her community should buy Canadian ingredients and support farmers. She was recognized by Dietitians of Canada as Honorary Recipient for her work that she does in creating learning opportunities for dietitians, and she has appeared on the Top 100 Most Fascinating Manitoban’s List for her work advocating for farmers, her love of fishing and cooking, and being an all-around great woman. Ellen graduated with a Bachelor of Education from the University of Winnipeg, and prior to joining Cereals Canada, she worked in the canola industry as the director for Canola Eat Well.

Richard Madan – Washington update

Richard Madan started his journalism career as a CBC Winnipeg reporter in 2000. He covered politics for CityTV in Toronto from 2004 to 2010 and worked for CTV as a parliamentary correspondent in Ottawa from 2010 until 2016, when he moved to Washington, first as bureau correspondent for CTV and then for CBC in 2023. In June he was appointed to head Manitoba’s new trade representative office in Washington.

DON FLATEN – The farm media’s role in fostering progress

Don Flaten is a professor emeritus in the Department of Soil Science at the University of Manitoba, where he retired in 2021 from his position as professor in Nutrient Management and Crop Nutrition. He continues to maintain a farm, industry, government, and media extension program as well as being an adviser to research funding organizations. Before joining the U of M, Don was the provincial soils specialist for the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture and a district agriculturist for Alberta Agriculture.

David Rourke – The farm media’s role in fostering progress

David Rourke farms at Minto, Manitoba, and has a long-term interest in soil health, using zero-till and regenerative agriculture practices. In 1983 he started Ag-Quest, a research company now run by his daughter Dana. In 2021 he wrote and published the book A Road to Fossil Fuel Free Farming: An Example and a Challenge, and recently completed his PhD thesis titled “In Search of Net Positive Carbon Grain Farms in Western Canada, Innovation in Policy and Practice.”

Rick Rutherford – The farm media’s role in fostering progress

Rick Rutherford is president of Rutherford Farms, a 5,500-acre seed farm at Grosse Isle near Winnipeg, and another at Gypsumville in Manitoba’s Interlake. He has had a long interest in collecting data and his farm at Grosse Isle has become the location for Innovation Farms Powered by AgExpert, a test bed for new technology run in partnership with EMILI, a Winnipeg-based non-profit to evaluate leading-edge equipment, technology, and production practices.

David Lazarenko – How ag advertisers are adapting to change

David Lazarenko is partner/executive vice-president with Think Shift in Winnipeg. He has spent more than 20 years leading strategy and marketing efforts in agribusiness and led successful brand and product launches, sales campaigns and corporate responsibility initiatives for companies including Adama, Bayer, Cargill, Corteva, and Trimble.