Speakers

Keynote Speaker - Michael H. McCain

SCAC 2025 Keynote speaker - Michael McCain

Executive Chair, Maple Leaf Foods Inc.

Michael H. McCain is Executive Chair of Maple Leaf Foods, one of Canada’s flagship food companies, with annual sales in excess of $4.5 billion and a vision to be the most sustainable protein company on earth.

Michael has devoted his career to the food industry, starting at McCain Foods in the late 1970s, where he held a variety of roles, including President and Chief Executive Officer of McCain Foods USA. He joined Maple Leaf Foods in 1995 and became Chief Executive Officer of the company in 1998, a position he held until May 2023. Michael is a practical visionary who has been instrumental in establishing Maple Leaf Foods as a sustainable, purpose-driven company with world-class assets, iconic market-leading brands, and bold ambition.

Michael is a vocal proponent of stakeholder capitalism, and deeply committed to creating shared value for all stakeholders. Under his leadership, Maple Leaf Foods transformed its business, becoming a focused protein company with an impressive growth trajectory that is grounded in a values-based culture. Michael led the establishment of the Maple Leaf Centre for Food Security, a charitable organization dedicated to addressing systemic causes of food insecurity in Canada through action, advocacy and partnerships, and was the driving force behind Maple Leaf Foods becoming the world’s first major carbon-neutral food company in 2019.

In addition to his role as Executive Chair at Maple Leaf Foods, Michael is a Director and Honorary Chair of the Maple Leaf Centre for Food Security, a Director of the Daymark Foundation, and Chair of McCain Capital Inc. He is also a member of the Business Council of Canada, and the Board of Trustees for the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Foundation.

Born in Florenceville, New Brunswick, Michael attended Mount Allison University and received an Honours Business Administration degree from the University of Western Ontario. He holds honorary degrees from Western University, St Mary’s University, Brock University, Carleton University and Guelph University. He is devoted to his children, grandchildren and family, and lives in Toronto.

Shabtai Bittman and Derek Hunt

SCAC 2025 speaker - Shabtai Bittman

Senior Researchers at AAFC Agassiz Research and Development Centre

We are researchers at the AAFC Agassiz Research and Development Centre located in south coastal BC. Our group works on nutrient management and related issues at the soil, farm, regional and national levels.

Shawn Catherwood

SCAC 2025 speaker - Shawn Catherwood

AAg, Founder, CEO at Spur Line Crop Solutions Ltd. and 5th generation farmer at Soli Vivi Farms Inc.

Shawn Catherwood wears a variety of hats within the industry but always introduces himself first as a 5th generation farmer from Ceylon, SK. His family has been farming at Ceylon since 1905. Continuing on this legacy is a powerful motive that drives Shawn to find ways to ensure this farm can have future success for another 5 generations. Longevity in this industry comes with adaptability. The original land base has seen numerous changes to how the family manages it - from heavy tillage dominating for the first 80 years to transitioning into a no-till conventional system to now embarking on a new journey towards an eco-friendly system under Shawn's management. Aside from the farm, Shawn has extensive experience in the world of on-farm sustainability programs thanks to his experience with PepsiCo and now through his company Spur Line Crop Solutions. Shawn is passionate about helping fellow farmers navigate through this changing agroecosystem we are currently experiencing.

Laird Crow

SCAC 2025 speaker - Laird Crow

Farm Manager, Yukon Grain Farm Ltd in Whitehorse, Yukon

Laird has been part of the team at Yukon Grain Farm for the past 10 years. He lives on the farm with his family and is passionate about his work and the important role the farm plays in the Yukon community. When life on the farm slows down, he likes to go fishing, snowmobiling, and skiing with his family.

Cam Dahl

SCAC 2025 speaker - Cam Dahl

General Manager at Manitoba Pork

Cam has broad experience throughout the agriculture sector. He has previously served as the founding president of Cereals Canada, Commissioner of the Canadian Grain Commission, and general manager of the Manitoba Beef Producers. He also has experience working on Parliament Hill and leadership roles with producer-led organizations. Cam has served on agriculture industry boards, including Chairing the Board of the Canada Grains Council and the Chair of the Steering Committee of the Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Crops. Cam has volunteered his time as Director, and Chair, of the Canadian Agricultural Hall of Fame and is a volunteer on the board of Farmers Abroad Canada, a charity focused on agriculture education and opportunity development in West Africa.

Tyler Fulton

SCAC 2025 speaker - Tyler Fulton

Director with Manitoba Beef Producers, Vice-President of the Canadian Cattle Association and a Producer.

Tyler and Dorelle along with their kids Evan and Mae own and operate Tyton Farm Ltd, a 600 head cow/calf/backgrounding operation south of Birtle, MB.  The farm operates about 6000 acres in prairie pothole country, which consists of mostly tame pasture, hay, and some annual crops. Tyler has spent most of his off-farm career in the field of livestock price risk management after he received a degree in Agribusiness from the University of Manitoba. He is passionate about improving the tools and programs available for cattle producers to manage risk on their operations.  Tyler currently serves as a Director with Manitoba Beef Producers and as the Vice-President of the Canadian Cattle Association.

Derrick Hastings

SCAC 2025 speaker - Derrick Hastings

Farm Manager, Tr'ondek Hwech'in Government Employee

Derrick has been farming in the Yukon (Tr'ondek Hwech'in territory) for 16 years. He has been T.H. farm manager for 8 seasons and specializes in Youth mentorship, livestock husbandry, egg production and organic/regenerative horticulture. He has been married for 19 years and has four children. Having experienced challenges both local and global, he has persevered and developed a resiliency that benefits him in the extremes of the northern environment.

Karen Landman

Terry D Lerat

ReconciliAg Advisor for the National Circle for Indigenous Food and Agriculture (NCIAF), and elected councillor for Cowessess First Nation.

Terry is the ReconciliAg Advisor for the National Circle for Indigenous Food and Agriculture (NCIAF). I also proudly serve as an elected councilor for Cowessess First Nation, a devoted husband, father of two daughters and one son, grandfather of six and great grandfather of two.

I was resided on Cowessess First Nation my entire life, growing up there on my parents mixed farm. I have developed a keen interest in the land and the benefits diversified agriculture offers to First Nation families and First Nation Communities.

Every day we had chores and tasks to attend to when we got home from school. Our parents raised every type of farm animal and livestock that would contribute to sustain our farm. We always had chickens, ducks geese, pigs, cattle and horses to attend to among household and yard chores. Needless to say, at the time most families also had huge gardens too, springtime with the arrival of new life leaves many great rewarding memories. Through the chores of looking after and caring for the farm animals we learned to respect the animals and all forms of flora and fauna. Our parents lead by example, they were hard working responsible parents, these traits were easily passed on to their children.

I began helping my father with his mixed farming operations at a young age and continued to farm with him in the late 1970s along the way gaining valuable knowledge from him and the many members of our First Nation who also had their own family farms. As time would allow, I also enrolled in all agricultural modules I could at the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Arts and Sciences. There, I accomplished many certificates for completion of agricultural courses in crop and livestock production.

As a 17-year-old I took employment with PFRA pastures as a pasture rider on our First Nation and neighboring First nations until the federal government disbanded them in 1976. I then moved on to managing two pastures on ours and the neighboring FN, eventually leasing all the old PFRA pastures on Cowessess to establish my own custom grazing operation, this venture carried on for 35 years. I always seemed to have two jobs, the one at home and one working for anyone who would hire me. This led me to operate construction equipment on our FN and then I moved on to a large operation that worked across the tree prairie provinces. Eventually I opted for a job at a neighboring large farm and purebred cattle operation, this is where I picked up the most on modern farming practices and agricultural production focusing on purebred cattle, genetics and BMPs of owning a successful cattle operation. I retired from working off the FN in the fall of 2018 (so I thought) to stay home and concentrate on improving and building up my existing herd of cattle.

Marla Riekman

SCAC 2025 speaker - Marla Riekman

Soil Management Specialist at Manitoba Agriculture

Marla Riekman is the Soil Management Specialist with Manitoba Agriculture. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Agroecology and a Master's Degree in Soil Science, both from the University of Manitoba. Before joining Manitoba Agriculture in 2007, Marla worked as the Farm Manager for the Manitoba Zero Tillage Research Association and also as a Soil Conservationist with the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration. Marla's main focus is to provide extension on dealing with problem soils and maintaining long-term productivity by managing soil health. Marla's passion for soil has even crept into her personal life – she is known to create jewelry with soil in her spare time!