Grainswest - Fall 2024

Fall 2024 grainswest.com 17 BY IAN DOIG • ILLUSTRATION BY EMILY CHU Cereals Canada VP tackles big-picture agriculture policy Grain implications M ark Walker’s maternal grandparents farmed in Manitoba’s Interlake Region and his father grew up on a livestock farm just outside Victoria, B.C. These deep family farming connections led him to pursue an academic path to a career in agriculture. Cereals Canada vice-president of markets and trade, Walker holds a degree in international economic policy from Carleton University as well as law and political studies degrees from the University of Manitoba. Having completed his studies, he welcomed the oppor- tunity to apply his expertise in an industry that feeds the world. Prior to taking up his current position in April 2022, he worked for the Canadian Canola Growers Association managing na- tional and international environment and sustainability policies. Yet with all his formal education and on-the-job experience, the Winnipegger also credits 4-H Manitoba for the critical job skills it gave him. As a 4-H youth member in various executive po- sitions, he absorbed Robert’s Rules of Order and practiced public speaking. Of the many agricultural topics he tackles, Walker particularly enjoys trade policy. With a laugh, he also admitted he really enjoys analyzing legislation and regulations. Light reading it isn’t, but at his Cereals Canada desk, each workday brings an armload of this favourite subject matter as he calculates legislative outcomes and implications for the ag industry. “That is so important because the impacts go all the way across the value chain from the farm gate to Otta- wa,” he said. GrainsWest: What are your job duties? Mark Walker: I lead our markets and trade team. It focuses on government relations, market intelligence and trade policy, crop protection and production, environment and sustainability as well as our domestic and international programming. I’m so lucky that I get to go to work every day with a team of experts in their respective fields. GW: What are the areas of most concern in Canada’s global cereals trade, and what are the most promising opportunities? MW: What concerns me most, internationally and domestically, is derogation from science-based principles. Internationally, we see that used as a foil for protectionism. Outright protectionism is getting so bad we see some countries blatantly being