U.S. seed and chemical giant Monsanto has named one of its U.S. regional directors to lead the company’s Canadian business operations.
Lisa Safarian, currently the parent company’s regional business director for its north/central region based in St. Louis, Mo., will move to Winnipeg next month to become president and general manager of Monsanto Canada.
Safarian, who has worked for Monsanto since 1987 in sales, information technology and intellectual property management, replaces Sean Gardner, who moves back to the company’s St. Louis head office to lead the parent company’s global chemistry business.
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Monsanto said in a release Wednesday that Safarian will be in charge of the company’s operations in both Western and Eastern Canada, “including reinforcing the long-term strategic importance of canola to the overall Canadian business and leveraging the company’s corn and soybean pipeline in Eastern Canada.”
Safarian will also be a member of the parent company’s global commercial leadership team, Monsanto said.
“Canadian farmers are strong adopters of technology,” she said in Monsanto’s release, “and with a full pipeline of future beneficial products for both eastern and western Canadian farmers, it is an exciting time to be leading the Canadian business.”
Under new management
Safarian’s appointment was announced at the same time as several others at the Winnipeg office, including Cory McArthur as the Canadian wing’s marketing director for canola and crop protection.
Originally from northeastern Saskatchewan, McArthur has worked for the company for 10 years, most recently as chemistry business manager for Eastern and Western Canada. He replaces Norm Sissons, who has been names global product manager for Monsanto’s Seminis vegetable business.
Replacing McArthur as chemistry business manager is Jennifer Bailes, who joined Monsanto Canada last fall as a chemistry marketing associate and was previously canola seed product manager for the Proven Seed division of what was then Agricore United (now Viterra).
Proven Seed’s former manager Neil Arbuckle has been named to Monsanto Canada’s newly created role of canola business development lead, where he’s to be in charge of development and implementation of the commercial launch of Roundup Ready 2 Yield canola. Arbuckle came to Monsanto Canada in 2006 as its DeKalb seed business manager.
Cornie Thiessen, who’s originally from southern Manitoba, came to Monsanto Canada in 1995 and most recently was its DeKalb marketing associate, now takes over from Arbuckle as that seed division’s business manager for Western Canada.
