An oat researcher known for his work adapting oats into food for sufferers of celiac disease was among those honoured Monday as the winners of the annual Canadian Agri-Food Awards of Excellence.
Ontario oat breeder Vernon Burrows, who has registered 27 varieties in his career, is a well-known volunteer with the Canadian Celiac Association, which serves people unable to consume wheat-, barley- or rye-based products. He has also used hulless oats to develop livestock feed for high-performance racehorses.
Burrows earned the 2007 Agri-Food award for voluntarism, one of six presented Monday at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. The awards are sponsored by the fair and by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
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The five other winners this year include:
- Chris Herrmann, age 18, of Schuler, Alta., for youth leadership, including his work with 4-H and developing sports activities for local rural youth;
- Prairie Orchard Farms of Winnipeg, for innovation, in the development of Omega-3 pork and chicken;
- Equavena Hulless Oats, a product by Quebec company Semican International Inc., for agri-food export for its work on oat feed for thoroughbred racehorses;
- Des Aulnages Stream Watershed Committee, also of Quebec, for environmental stewardship; and
- the B.C. Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program, administered by B.C. Ag in the Classroom, for agricultural awareness and education.
Winners were chosen from nominations submitted by the deadline of Sept. 7.
