The word “Canadian” may be a big part of its name, but a company that is conducting agricultural research around the globe is proud of its “made in PEI” roots.
Now, the Canadian Agri-Sustainability Partnership hopes to work with 12 primary producers across the province to help with that research. The company is receiving financial assistance from the PEI ADAPT Council, which administers the Canadian Adaptation and Rural Development Fund in the province for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
The company was the brainchild of four Islanders who are involved in the field of agricultural marketing and research — consultant Doug MacArthur, O’Leary veterinarian Gary Morgan, Wayne Hooper (who was with the Atlantic Veterinary College when the company was formed but is now deputy minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture and has left the partnership) and Allan Parker, a West Prince businessman with agricultural interests in Russia.
MacArthur said the partnership has grown and now involves 35 organizations across the country that are involved in all segments of the industry from production through to processing food safety. ”Our goal is to play a major role internationally in the area of food safety,” MacArthur said. “The partnership was formed to promote Canadian agricultural expertise in the international marketplace.”
To help them meet that goal, he said the company wants the involvement
of Island producers to help test products. For example, one of the group’s recent projects involved the shipment of cattle embryos from Prince Edward Island to Russia, where they were transplanted into Russian cattle. As well, the partnership has been involved with a potato project in the Dmitrov region of Russia.
For producers, he said working with the company would offer a prospect for additional income along with exposure for their products throughout the world. MacArthur said in addition to Russia, the partnership has projects in Serbia, Vietnam and Paraguay and “we are always looking for more.” MacArthur said the company has never forgotten its Island roots and uses experts and suppliers from Prince Edward Island whenever possible. He said having primary producers involved in the company’s upcoming projects fits very much into that philosophy.
“We are proud of the level of expertise that exists right here on PEI,” MacArthur said. “We don’t have to take a back seat to anybody else in the world.”
(This is one of a series of articles prepared by the PEI Agricultural Awareness Committee and funded by the PEI ADAPT Council and other partners to highlight new and innovative developments in the province's farming community.)
For more information, please contact Phil Ferraro at 368-2005.