Sarah Foster
Provincial Advisor
An internationally accredited seed analyst, Sarah has been involved in the seed industry since the late 1970s. With an early passion for plants, she has grown her background in botany into a leadership role in seed testing, seed physiology, crop inspection, and industry policy internationally. She strongly believes in bringing new ideas and innovations into the lab and the field for clients.
She studied and qualified as an accredited seed analyst at the National Institute of Agricultural Botany in Cambridge, England. Her career began as a seed analyst at Sharps Seed International in the UK and later on after immigrating to Canada in 1984 with The United Grain Growers.
In 1989 Sarah started 20/20 Seed Labs Inc. after Agriculture Canada began to privatize seed testing services. 20/20 Seed Labs continues to be a highly accredited, independent lab with three locations with industry-leading innovations, including research, trials, and novel testing.
20/20 Seed Labs has grown over the last 34 years and along with the Nisku location they provide services both in Winnipeg and Chile. 20/20 Seed Labs is an authorized ISTA laboratory and CFIA accredited along with holding membership in Seeds Canada, CSGA, SCST, and ISSS.
20/20 Seed Labs provides services for all crop kinds, including extensive quality and seed health analysis, molecular testing, and accredited crop inspection. They also do training, consulting, and provide space for grow-out trials in their greenhouse.
Sarah was the recipient of the Canadian Seed Trade Association 2013 Seed Achievement award and in 2017 received an Outstanding Service Achievement award from the Association of Alberta Seed Plants. In 2018 Sarah was a winner of the Business Edmonton and Business Calgary Entrepreneur of the Year. She has held various executive positions with the Commercial Seed Analysts Association of Canada, including the National President. As a technical auditor, Sarah is also involved with many committees, associations, and International Seed Testing Association.