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Baldur Rosmund Stefansson | |
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| Born | (1917-04-26)April 26, 1917 Vestfold, Manitoba |
| Died | January 3, 2002(2002-01-03) (aged 84) |
| Occupation | agronomist |
Baldur Rosmund Stefansson,OC OM (April 26, 1917 – January 3, 2002) was aCanadian agricultural scientist and as one of the originators ofcanola, becameknown as the "Father of Canola".
Born inVestfold, Manitoba, a son ofIcelandic immigrants Guðmundur and Jonina Stefansson, he served in the Canadian army duringWorld War II. After the war, he attended theUniversity of Manitoba where he received a Dip.Ag. in 1949, a B.S.A. in 1950, and a M.Sc. in 1952. He received his Ph.D. in 1966.
He worked in the Department of Plant Science for the University of Manitoba as a professor and researcher. He worked with Dr.Keith Downey to develop a variety ofrapeseed that could be used as an edible oil. This is known as canola and is one of Canada's top edible oil and one of the largest oilseed crops in the world. He retired in 1986.
In 1985 he was made an Officer of theOrder of Canada. In 1998 he was awarded the Order of the Buffalo Hunt, one of Manitoba's highest honours. In 2000, he was presented with theOrder of Manitoba and the IcelandicOrder of the Falcon.
He received Honorary Doctorates from the University of Manitoba in 1997 and theUniversity of Iceland in 2000. He was inducted to theCanadian Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2002.
He was married to Sigridur and they had three children: Bjorgvin, Helga and Paul.
