Collaborative. Agile. Innovative.
Partnering begins within Avena, where we put a strong emphasis on working together to achieve success. Teams interact with each other freely – maintaining high standards, responding quickly to customers and adapting effectively and cohesively when seeking solutions.
Read more: Avena’s core values and Commitments.
Leadership
Avena’s leadership team guides the company and builds on the tradition of providing customers with safe, nutritious ingredients milled from sustainable crops.
Wayne Arsenault
Chief Executive Officer
James Del Frari
VP, Operations
Mike Gallais
Director, Procurement
Margaret Hughes
VP, Sales and Marketing
Lesley McFarlane
VP, Finance
Sneha Nathani
VP, Food Safety and Quality Assurance
Reid Nystuen
Director, Special Projects
Sales and Marketing
Avena’s sales and marketing team collaborate with customers to improve existing products and to create new, innovative foods and beverages. Do you have a specific application or ingredient challenge? Contact our team today to discover the best pulse and oat ingredients for your product development.
Jennifer Evancio
Director, Sales and Business Development, Vancouver, BC
Dan Fedsin
Director, Sales and Business Development, Toronto, ON
Morgan Gallais
Plant Manager and Sales, Rowatt, SK
Laurie Gillies
Senior Associate, Marketing and Communications, Regina, SK
Shireen Li
Senior Associate, Sales and Marketing, Regina, SK
Brice Linville
Director, Sales and Business Development, Kansas City, MO
Research and Development Team
Our research and development team works closely with all Avena teams – operations, quality assurance, and sales and marketing teams – to provide our customers with customized solutions and application support.
Kelly Henderson
Manager, R&D, Portage la Prairie, MB
Melanie Laguio
Lab Technician, Portage la Prairie, MB
Myla Mendoza
Lab Technician, Portage la Prairie, MB
Alana Wilson Werbiski
Research Coordinator, Portage la Prairie, MB
The Faces of Avena
Meet the teams behind the scenes who are key to providing our customers with high quality ingredients for safe, healthy diets and a sustainable world.
Logistics and Customer Service Teams
Our logistics and customer service teams are key to Avena’s operations as a leading food processing company. They direct and monitor orders from receipt of purchase order to delivery of Avena’s ingredients to our customer’s door.
Procurement Team
Avena’s pulse crop and grain buyers work directly with our farmers and ingredient processing teams in our facilities on the Canadian Prairies. Ensuring all ingredients meet the high standards for food and beverage product development, nutraceuticals, or pet food and nutritional products.
Operations Team
Our ingredient milling, processing and packaging teams across our facilities have developed systems that guarantee high-quality and safe ingredients – providing you with the quality ingredients needed for food development or manufacturing.
Food Safety and Quality Assurance Team
Traceability is integral in maintaining our record as a trusted food processing company. Our food safety and quality assurance team supports customers and Avena’s facilities with exemplary Food Safety and Quality Management Systems.
Join our team!
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