Fadi Al-Daoud, PhD, is the Greenhouse Vegetable Specialist at Ontario’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). His portfolio includes vegetables and cannabis grown in controlled environments, such as greenhouses, warehouses and vertical farms. After earning his doctorate from the Department of Biology at McMaster University with a specialization in molecular plant pathology, Fadi worked at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Fredericton, New Brunswick, and in the Department of Plant Agriculture at the University of Guelph in Ontario. He has conducted applied and fundamental research of horticultural and field crops, and has experience communicating his research to the scientific community and producers. Today, he works in collaboration with producers, researchers and industry partners to advance controlled environment agriculture in Ontario. E-mail: fadi.al-daoud@ontario.ca
Cara McCreary is the Greenhouse Vegetable IPM Specialist with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) and is working out of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Harrow Research & Development Centre. Cara joined the ministry in January 2015 from a position as a Research Associate in the Edible Bean Program at the University of Guelph Ridgetown Campus. Prior to joining the University of Guelph, Cara spent 6 months as the Acting Field Crop Entomologist at OMAFRA. She also has several years of experience as a greenhouse scout and supervisor, and as a horticultural advisor. Cara has a Master of Science in Environmental Biology from the University of Guelph, a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Administration from the University of Windsor, and an Associate Diploma in Horticulture from the University of Guelph. During her Master’s degree, she studied the life cycle, temperature-dependent development and economic impact of an agricultural pest, the bean leaf beetle. In her current role with the ministry, Cara has worked extensively on emerging pest issues, such as pepper weevil and tomato brown rugose fruit virus. Pest management has been her focus and passion through both work experience and education. E-mail: cara.mccreary@ontario.ca
ONGreenhouseVegetables 