Dr. Donald MacKenzie is the Executive Director of the Institute for International Crop Improvement (IICI) at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center.  He manages the IICI’s programs and partnerships dedicated to delivering precision genetics technologies to meet the most significant food and nutritional security challenges faced by smallholder farmers.  Don also provides guidance on navigating through the practical, safety and regulatory processes necessary to demonstrate that new crop varieties are safe and effective for the farmers who will benefit from them.

Don’s extensive experience in plant product development and global regulatory processes aligns with the Institute’s commitment to collaborate with international and local partner organizations to deliver crops with improved disease and pest resistance, yield, and nutritional content to places where people are in most need.  

Dr. MacKenzie received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of British Columbia and began his research career with Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada.  Since then, Don has served in various leadership roles in the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada, the agricultural biotechnology industry, and in public sector research and development organizations.  Dr. MacKenzie joined the Danforth Center from the International Rice Research Institute, where he led the regulatory component of the Golden Rice project, following his tenure as the regulatory and government affairs leader for DuPont Pioneer Canada and the global regulatory lead for DuPont Pioneer’s canola program.