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John Murray Cormack
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Grain company executive.
Born at Rossburn on 14 November 1934, son of John William Cormack and Jessie Nickel (1895-1983), he received a BSc degree in Agriculture from the University of Manitoba in 1957 then was an Agricultural Representative at Swan River (1957-1959). He later obtained a MSc degree from the University of Nebraska and a doctoral degree from Iowa State University.
In 1963, he returned to Winnipeg and joined the Manitoba Department of Agriculture, serving as Assistant Deputy Minister (1963-1968) and Deputy Minister (1968-1973). In 1973, he joined Manitoba Pool Elevators and held the positions of Assistant General Manager (1973-1978), General Manager (1978-1984), and Chief Executive Officer (1984-1987). In 1988, he was recruited by Agro Company of Canada, a division of Con Agra Foods, to be its Chief Executive Officer at Montreal, Quebec. He returned to Winnipeg in 1993 to consult for the Federal Business Development Bank and the Manitoba Government. He was Executive Director of the Western Grain Marketing Panel (1995-1997) and Deputy Minister for Industry, Trade and Tourism (1997-1999).
He held positions on several boards, committees, and commissions, including Chairs of the Manitoba Dairy Board, Manitoba Agriculture Credit Corporation, Senior Grain Transportation Committee, and Westglen Milling Limited. He was a director of the Manitoba Clean Environment Commission, Lake Winnipeg Management Board, XCAN Grain, Prince Rupert Grain Limited, CSP Foods Limited, Western Cooperative Fertilizer Limited, Pacific Elevators Limited, Western Grain Elevator Association, Economic Development Winnipeg, and Ensis Growth Fund.
On 18 August 1962, he married Catherine Joyce Crookshank at the St. Matthew’s Anglican Cathedral and they had four sons, including Neil Cormack (1965-2014). In recognition of his many contributions to Manitoba’s agricultural sector, he was inducted into the Manitoba Agricultural Hall of Fame (2009).
He died at Winnipeg on 31 July 2023.
“Engagements,” Winnipeg Tribune, 21 July 1962, page 36.
“Cormack quits govt. job,” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 October 1973, page 3.
Obituary [Neil Cormack], Winnipeg Free Press, 18 January 2014.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 5 August 2023.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 5 August 2023
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