By Alice McFarlane

Agriculture Roundup for Monday, January 22, 2024

Jan 22, 2024 | 3:54 PM

A past president of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA) has been named to the Senate.

Mary Robinson made history as the first female President of CFA, leading the organization from 2019 to 2023.

Robinson is a managing partner in a sixth-generation family farm operation in Prince Edward Island.

Prior to her role at CFA, she served as the first female chair at the Canadian Agriculture Human Resource Council, held the presidency of the PEI Federation of Agriculture from 2015 to 2017, and joined the board of directors of the World Farmers’ Organization (WFO) in 2020. In recognition of her global impact, Mary was elected vice-president of the World Farmers Organization in May 2023.

CFA President Keith Currie said Robinson has been a stalwart leader and advocate for Canadian agriculture.

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“We are thrilled to see someone of her caliber, with extensive knowledge, expertise, and a profound understanding of agriculture, join the Senate,” Robinson said.

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The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) and Azure Sustainable Fuels Corp. (Azure) are partnering on a front-end engineering and design study for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production in Canada.

SAF is considered an essential component in reducing emissions from the aviation industry and its reliance on traditional fossil-based jet fuel. The use of Azure’s SAF in existing jet engines could reduce airline emissions by approximately 2.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year globally – the equivalent of removing 550,000 passenger vehicles from the road.

The greenhouse gas emissions reduction is driven by the use of Canadian feedstock from agricultural products such as canola and soybean oils, used to develop the SAF.

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Avena Foods Ltd. announced the appointment of Wayne Arsenault as its new CEO, following the retirement of Gord Flaten.

Avena Board Chair Pete Samson Arsenault’s customer-first approach, which was developed over years in strategic management, manufacturing, and brand development.

“His passion for building partnerships and empowering teams strongly aligns with Avena’s vision of partnering for safe, healthy diets and a sustainable world,” Samson said.

By age 29, Arsenault was the youngest plant manager in the Coca-Cola Enterprises system, responsible for the Toronto plant. He went on to become general manager at Molson Canadian, Vancouver, where he was awarded ‘best performing brewery’ for two consecutive years.

Over the years he has held several leadership roles, including president and CEO of Calgary’s Big Rock Brewery, and vice president operations and human resources and vice president Alignment Champion at Moosehead Breweries.

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alice.mcfarlane@pattisonmedia.com

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