AIC Welcomes Dr. Wilf Keller as VP of Outreach
For immediate release
January 22, 2020, Ottawa – The Agri-food Innovation Council (AIC) is delighted to announce that Dr. Wilf Keller will be joining the organization as it’s Vice President of Outreach. In this role, he will be responsible for interacting with the various stakeholders in the agri-food industry on behalf of AIC. Dr. Keller has intimate knowledge of AIC’s operations and goals having served as its Board chair until earlier this year.
Dr. Keller’s extensive background includes a doctorate in Crop Science from the University of Saskatchewan, over 15 years at Agriculture Canada, where he established a plant biotechnology research programme which he chaired for 9 years. He spent nearly two decades at the Plant Biotechnology Institute (PBI) of the National Research Council of Canada where he spearheaded Canola biotechnology research. Additionally, he served as the head of the Transgenic Plant Center until 1999, when he accepted the position of research director. In 2007 he took a one-year posting as the acting director general of PBI and when finished, served as president and CEO of Genome Prairie from 2008 to 2012. He was then the President and CEO of Ag-West Bio Inc until 2020.
He has been instrumental in numerous agri-food initiatives including the application of genomics in canola improvement; the development of industrial bioproducts from vegetable oils; and the production of bioactive natural products in plants for enhanced human health and quality of life, among others. His work in the Agri-Food sector has been recognized over the last decade starting with earning his Lifetime Achievement award from the Society for In Vitro Biology in 2010, the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 2015 and by being inducted into both the Saskatchewan and Canadian Agricultural Halls of Fame in 2017 and 2018 respectively.
“We’re looking forward to Dr. Keller joining our team, given his background, he will serve an integral role with our organization as VP of outreach. His guidance, knowledge of the sector and key players will be an asset to help further the development and goals of AIC through various outreach efforts with stakeholders,” said Serge Buy, AIC’s CEO.
For more information, please contact Serge Buy, AIC’s CEO at 613-720-1777 or sbuy@aic.ca.