Education
He received his Doctor of Philosophy from Cornell University in 1961.
He received his Doctor of Philosophy from Cornell University in 1961.
Born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, In 1951 he received a Bachelor of Agricultural Science and in 1952 a Master of Science from the University of Saskatchewan. In 1951 he started working for Agriculture Canada, becoming in 1993 a Senior Research Scientist Emeritus. In 1993, he started his own firm and is President of Canoglobe Consulting Incorporated.
He worked with Baldur Stefansson to develop a variety of rapeseed that could be used as an edible oil.
This is known as canola and is one of Canada’s top edible oils and one of the largest oilseed crops in the world. He is the breeder and co-breeder of 13 rapeseed/canola varieties and five condiment mustard varieties.
In 1998, "Downey Street" at a research and development park in Saskatoon was named in his honour. 1963 Bond Gold Medal, American Oil Chemists’ Society.