Western Canada’s agriculture, biotech and research sectors are mourning the loss of an academic, entrepreneur and science promoter who helped to establish Saskatoon and Saskatchewan as a hub of biotech research.
John Valentine Cross passed away in early January at the age of 80.
Cross, along with partners George Khachatourians and John Schaw, co-founded a Saskatoon based-company called Philom Bios in 1980, one of the first ag biotech companies to set up shop in the province.
The company developed and manufactured ag biologicals and pulse inoculants.
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Cross, remembered for his calm demeanor and dedication to promoting science and industry, served as the president and board chair of Philom Bios until it was sold in late 2007 to the Danish biological company Novozymes.
Philom Bios’s products included JumpStart, the world’s first commercial phosphate inoculant, TagTeam, a phosphate and nitrogen inoculant designed for field peas, lentils, chickpeas, soybeans and dry beans, and N-Prove, a line of pre-formulated rhizobium inoculants for legume crops.
People who knew him described Cross as a pioneering force who saw an exciting opportunity for ag biologicals and their potential to help prairie farmers and expand the prairie agriculture sector.
Early attempts to raise capital for the company were not easy but Cross persevered and eventually secured funding that allowed Philom Bios to conduct foundational research at the National Research Council in Ottawa.
The company’s research and development programs were eventually relocated to the Plant Biotechnology Institute in Saskatoon, where Cross and his partners expanded operations and began manufacturing the company’s first commercial products.
In 2015, Cross was named a member of the Order of Canada for his accomplishments and contributions to Canadian science, biotechnology and agriculture sectors, and for his extensive community engagement.
Cross was born Feb. 14, 1940, in Budworth, a small village in northern Wales, not far from Liverpool.
He earned a bachelor of chemical engineering degree from the University of Bradford in the United Kingdom before immigrating to Canada in 1963.
He continued his education at the University of Western Ontario, where he earned a master’s degree in engineering science in 1965.
Soon after, he moved to Saskatoon to work in the food research division of Labatt Brewing.
In 1975, he became the founding director of the POS Pilot Plant Corp., before starting his own company, Philom Bios.
During his time in Saskatoon, Cross also served on numerous national boards and committees, including the National Biotechnology Advisory Committee, the National Research Council of Canada, and the Pest Management Advisory Committee.
He also served as director and chair of the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) and served on the boards AgWest Biotech, the Saskatoon and Region Economic Development Authority (SREDA), and other organizations.
Cross was named Canadian Entrepreneur of the Year for the Prairie Region for Science and Technology and, in 1998, was awarded the first Agri-Business Leadership Award by the Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce.
In 2002, he was awarded an Honorary Life Membership by the Saskatchewan Institute of Agrologists.
Calvin Sonntag, chief executive officer with BrettYoung Seeds in Winnipeg, described Cross as a “gentle, calm, very positive and passionate person” who inspired others around him with his ethics and consistently optimistic outlook.
He was “driven by his consistently optimist view of the future,” said Sonntag, who worked with Cross for years.
“He believed that by investing in ourselves, and in our future and in new technology, there could be nothing but better times ahead.”
Sonntag said one of the things he will remember most about Cross was his integrity.
“Integrity emanated from the man. It was at the very core of his being,” Sonntag said.
“John was one of those people who was blessed with a very, very long fuse. I only ever saw John angry once, and the only time I ever saw him angry was when it was discovered that a certain person in the lab had conducted themselves with something other than scientific integrity and honesty.”
More commonly it was Cross’s calm demeanor and positive outlook that inspired his peers and acquaintances.
“A lot of people would use the word inspiring to describe John and I think the way he inspired people was because he was so gentle and calm, yet persistent and positive and passionate.”
