The former president of the Saskatchewan Herb and Spice Association was remembered last week as an innovator and a mentor.
Martin Gareau, 47, was found dead in his home on the Cayman Islands May 20. Royal Cayman Islands police have confirmed they are investigating the death as a homicide.
A police spokesperson quoted in the Caymanian Compass newspaper said Gareau suffered multiple injuries caused by sharp and blunt objects “which could only be caused by another person or persons.”
Gareau was from the Prince Albert, Sask., area but had lived and worked on Cayman for nearly four years.
Read Also
University of Manitoba honours three agricultural alumni
Cathey Day, Fred Greig and Kim McConnell were chosen for the University of Manitoba’s 2025 certificates of merit from the agricultural and food sciences faculty.
He was instrumental in building the herb and spice industry, beginning in 1990, said Connie Kehler, executive director of the association. He served as president from 1995 to 2001.
“Everybody’s in shock,” she said.
Her phone and e-mail have been busy receiving messages of condolence from across Canada. They are a tribute to what Gareau meant to the growers, she said.
He was the first to genuinely look at investing in value-added in the herb and spice sector, she said.
At one time Gareau’s Maple Ridge Farms was the largest dill producer in the province. He also grew coriander and caraway.
He built and operated a large commercial scale distillation plant for essential oils and tackled breaking into the essential oil culinary industry, Kehler said.
Personal circumstances put an end to his plans, and he moved to the Cayman Islands to work for a cousin’s construction firm.
“He was building a new life and went at it with enthusiasm like he did everything else,” said Kehler. “He was an innovator, a leader. He built the foundation and everybody felt the huge impact on the industry and them personally.”
