Five more people whose contributions helped shape Ontario agriculture have now been formally inducted into the Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame.
Senator Rob Black, Scott Graham, Brian O’Connor and posthumous recipients Dr. Helen Fisher and Percy Hodgetts were recognized for leadership and innovation that transformed the province’s agri-food sector, in a ceremony June 14 at the GrandWay Event Centre in Elora.
The 2026 inductees were selected by the Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame Association for their lasting impacts in public policy, viticulture, livestock genetics, food production and industry leadership.
Senator Rob Black unveils his portrait at the induction ceremony with the help of board member Jean Howden. Photo: Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame.
The Honourable Robert Black
Senator Robert Black has spent more than four decades advancing agriculture and rural communities in Ontario and across Canada. Appointed to the Senate in 2018, he currently serves as chair of the Senate standing committee on agriculture and forestry and deputy leader of the Canadian Senators Group.
Black led legislation establishing Food Day in Canada and spearheaded the Senate’s first major soil health study in 40 years, Critical Ground: Why Soil is Essential to Canada’s Economic, Environmental, Human, and Social Health, which continues to inform national conservation policy.
His commitment to leadership development includes helping transition 4-H Ontario into an independent charitable organization, serving as a founding CEO of the Rural Ontario Institute and directing the Advanced Agricultural Leadership Program, where he mentored more than 136 agricultural and rural leaders. Black is also a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
Board member Ellen Edney assists Mike Fisher in unveiling the portrait of Dr. Helen Fisher. Photo: Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame
Dr. Helen Fisher (1948-2025)
Known as the “Grape Doctor,” Dr. Helen Fisher played a pivotal role in transforming Ontario’s wine industry. As a researcher and educator, she helped lead the industry’s transition from labrusca to vinifera grape varieties during the 1980s, a shift that elevated Ontario wines on the world stage.
Her research provided practical solutions to challenges facing grape growers, including cold-weather protection, trellising systems and rootstock selection. Beyond her scientific contributions, Fisher mentored generations of viticulturists through her work at the University of Guelph, Niagara College and Brock University.
Fisher also broke barriers as the first woman appointed to Ontario’s provincial agricultural field advisory service. Her contributions earned numerous honours, including lifetime achievement awards from the Vintners’ Quality Alliance and the American Society for Enology and Viticulture.
OAHF board member Alan Rickard assists inductee Scott Graham in unveiling his portrait. Photo: Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame.
Scott Graham
A second-generation egg farmer, Scott Graham, is recognized for helping modernize Ontario’s egg industry while strengthening consumer confidence in Canadian food production.
As chair of Egg Farmers of Ontario from 2012 to 2020, Graham led the creation of the Quota Transfer System, establishing a transparent process for quota transactions. He also championed the Consumer Choice Campaign, which ultimately led to the nationally recognized Egg Quality Assurance program focused on food safety and animal care.
More recently, Graham helped advance the Hyper-eye project, a non-invasive technology that identifies the sex of eggs before hatching and supported international development projects in Africa aimed at building sustainable poultry operations and improving food security.
His leadership extended to defending supply management during trade negotiations and helping launch the Food Bank Egg Donation Program, which now supports more than 130 Ontario food banks.
Brian O’Connor speaks at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show in 2025. Photo: File
Brian O’Connor
Brian O’Connor’s career reshaped Ontario’s dairy genetics sector and strengthened the province’s agricultural infrastructure.
As founding general manager of EastGen, he helped guide the merger of Eastern Breeders Inc. and Gencor, creating one of Canada’s leading cattle genetics organizations. Under his leadership, EastGen introduced technologies that improved herd performance and farm profitability across Ontario.
During the BSE crisis, O’Connor worked to preserve critical agricultural infrastructure by establishing the Gencor Foods meat processing plant and helping revive Thornloe Cheese, protecting jobs and processing capacity in rural communities.
A longtime advocate for youth development, he founded the Canadian Intercollegiate Judging Competition while still a university student. More than four decades later, the competition continues to develop future agricultural leaders. O’Connor also expanded EastGen youth programming and successfully advocated for farmers during revisions to Ontario’s Veterinary Act.
Percy W. Hodgetts (1878–1966)
Often referred to as the father of Ontario’s modern fruit industry, Percy W. Hodgetts spent more than four decades with Ontario’s Department of Agriculture, including 35 years as the first director of the Ontario Fruit Branch.
Hodgetts helped professionalize the sector by appointing Ontario’s first specialized apiarist and entomologist and establishing the Horticultural Experimental Station at Vineland as a hub for research and innovation. He also championed the Fruit Pests Act, introducing inspection and spraying programs that protected orchards from destructive pests.
A strong advocate for grower education, Hodgetts launched demonstration trains, packing schools and field programs while promoting co-operative marketing, cold-storage infrastructure and standardized packing practices. The systems he helped establish provided stability for the industry during the economic and climate challenges of the 1930s and laid the foundation for future growth.
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