Cargill hosted a groundbreaking event June 26 at the Aberdeen site of the company's future specialty canola research and production centre, scheduled to open in November 2008.

 The Cargill Specialty Canola Oils Research and Production Centre will be part of Cargill's research farm, located about 48 kilometers from Cargill's canola crush facility in Clavet, Saskatchewan. The research farm supports Cargill's specialized hybrid breeding and production trials, with a focus on developing high-yielding agronomic traits and the next generation of output traits. Planting at the research farm began last May.

According to Jenny Verner, president, Cargill Specialty Canola Oils, the research farm and production centre allow Cargill to centralize its hybrid breeding program in the heart of the commercial production region.

"Cargill's investment in this research farm and production centre demonstrates our commitment to the Canadian canola industry and our valued producers," said Verner. "Cargill is committed to serving the entire supply chain, providing high-yielding Victory(TM) canola hybrids to farmers that ultimately result in oils with zero trans fats and lower saturated fat for our customers and the consumers they serve."

Pictured at the groundbreaking event in the attached photo are, left to right: Steve Stadelmaier, supervisor of facility operations; Craig Linde, hybrid evaluation lead; Rick Wiebe, territory manager; Vuk Bozic, specialty crop manager; Ken Kruger, canola producer; Chris Aud, crop production and product line director; Xinmin Deng, breeding manager; Blaine Tomolak, agronomist; Jenny Verner, president, Cargill Specialty Canola Oils.

Cargill, which operates grain handling and crop input facilities across Ontario and the Prairies, works in partnership with producers to develop grain-marketing solutions. Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Cargill Limited employs over 10,000 people across Canada and has business interests in meat, egg and oilseed processing, animal feed, salt, chocolate, natural gas, crop inputs, as well as grain handling, merchandising and milling. For more information, visit www.cargill.ca.

Cargill is an international provider of food, agricultural and risk management products and services. With 158,000 employees in 66 countries, the company is committed to using its knowledge and experience to collaborate with customers to help them succeed. For more information, visit http://www.cargill.com.