This announcement comes following Len Penner's notice of retirement after 38 years of service with Cargill. Following a career path similar to Penner's, Vassart enters this new position with 17 years of experience in various roles at Cargill including sales and general management and most recently having returned from an assignment working with Cargill's grains and oilseed business in Australia.

 

"This is an exciting time for the Canadian agriculture industry," said Vassart. "Cargill has been expanding its footprint and creating opportunities for growth and development with building a new rapeseed crush facility in Camrose, AB, we're adding refining capacities to our rapeseed processing plant in Clavet, SK, we're in the process of building a new state-of-the-art flour mill with our joint venture, Horizon Milling G.P., in Guelph, Ontario, and last fall saw the opening of a major farm service centre in Northern Alberta. To me, this is a strong indication of the direction the industry as a whole is moving towards," added Vassart.

 

While Penner largely supported the implementation and development of these projects in Canada, he's looking forward to how the next generation of agriculture will carry them out. "With a continued focus on sustainable farm practices, creating attractive and emerging workforces and a growing population, I am confident that agriculture will prosper as an innovative and dynamic industry for generations to come," added Penner.