Michael Mazourek is co-founder of Row 7 Seed Company and an Associate Professor of Plant Breeding and Genetics at Cornell University. He first met the likes of the butternut squash, the cucumber, the pea and the pepper tending to his family’s garden as a child. A deep interest in human health led him to the study of biochemistry, illuminating the links between plants and the important phytochemicals in our diet. Today he has the opportunity to strengthen these connections by breeding improved vegetables.