IS THE SEEDS WORLD A MEN’S WORLD OR NOT?

We have asked this to our colleagues Franca Castagnoli and Arianna Rustignoli.

Please read our join interview to these two colleagues of us who are two women in the seeds world at Sais Spa.

What’s your name?

Franca: Franca Castagnoli (F. from now on)

Arianna: Arianna Rustignoli (A. from now on)

What is your role in the company?

  1. F. I am the manager of the research center in Sais and I am in charge of the breeding of table tomatoes and basil and of the management of the research department
    A.     I am a countryside technician

How long have you been working in Sais?

  1. F. Since 1988
    A. I’m starting my seventh year in the cultivation department of Sais

Which are the aspects of your job that you like most?

  1. F. It is a scientific and creative job at the same time
  2. A.I fancy plants. I like to observe how starting from a small seeds with extremely variable shapes and colors, they sprout and grow differently depending on the conditions to which they are exposed.  I enjoy watching the development of the vegetation and see the plants culminate at the time of flowering and then fruiting and reaching seed production again.  They have a very fast life cycle and show to attentive eyes the fragilities due to the environments to which they are exposed and at the same time a great ability to adapt.

What are the most difficult challenges you face in your job?

  1. F. The competition from multinational corporations that have high bugets for research and development
  2. A. The various changes that are affecting the agricultural sector in recent times, starting from the climate change to the rising cost of materials and the decline of their availability and of labor.

Which Sais variety(s) do you like best and why ?

  1. F. All marmande-type ribbed tomatoes from our breeding program such as Marynella F1
    A. Pumpkins, like Marina di Chioggia. They are beautiful vegetables by their very nature…the plants have lush vegetation and colorful fruits of a thousand shapes and sizes. For us in the countryside, they are the most fun vegetable to thresh.

What would you like to do if you could spend a day in the cultivation department with Arianna?

  1. F. I also deal with production, without being part of the cultivation department.

What would you like to do if you could spend a day in the research department with Franca?

  1. A. I would pull a line on the late varieties that are the most difficult to put into production… (she laughs) joking aside of course you always have to find a good compromise between commercially attractive varieties and their reproduction. If I could spend a day in the R&D office I would study the origin of certain materials and especially their behavior in other parts of the world. Any differences in plant behavior can give rise to insights for new ideas, and seed production like other areas of agriculture needs to be dynamic and innovative.

Is the seed world a men’s world?

  1. F. Yes it is a men’s world but not a male-dominate world
  2. A. I certainly used to, but maybe no longer.

We at Sais hope you have enjoyed our joint interview wish all women in the seed industry a happy Women’s Day