I hope you are all having a great summer! As we emerge from our lock-down doldrums, we are optimistic that our lives and businesses will start to resemble some form of “normal” again. There is no doubt many of us have had to be resilient and creative to stay active and competitive in this ever-evolving industry.
Your CIFST Board of Directors and Staff have been hard at work to make sure we are creating content and programs that are of value to all of our members. I want to share some of our upcoming programs with you but first, let me introduce to you our new slate of 2021/2022 Board of Directors:
New Directors
Tanya Der - Pulse Canada
Marcia English, St. Francis Xavier University
Dana McCauley, University of Guelph
Returning Directors
Louis Ayotte, ROHA Canada
Steve Cui - Guelph Research and Development Centre
Nasir Hameed - Acadian Seaplants Limited
Rob Kowal - Kriscor & Associates
Jenny Tian - Loblaw Companies Limited
Yvonne Yuan - Ryerson University, School of Nutrition
Constance Wrigley-Thomas, CIFST – Ex. Officio
We would also like to thank our outgoing, long-time board member, Dr. Vasantha Rupasinghe. Vasantha joined the Board in 2015 and has made significant contributions to the association as co-chair and chair of the Science Advisory Panel, as a member of the Editorial Advisory Council for Canadian Food Insights, and chairing the 2018 Annual Conference in Niagara on the Lake. He has also served as a member of various committees.
We will continue to look to Vasantha for his wise counsel and perspective. I am also pleased to see that Vasantha will remain active with the Science Advisory Panel.
Here is a list of our committees:
Past Presidents Advisory Committee: Brad McKay, Phillip Lee Wing, Dr. Hosahalli Ramaswamy, Belinda Elysee-Collen, Rob Kowal
Scientific Advisory Panel: Dr. Vasantha Rupasinghe – Co-Chair, Michael Nickerson – Co-Chair; John G. Keogh, Monique Lacroix, Amy Bowen
Student Committee: Francois Girard - Chair, Anthony Bassey - Vice-Chair, Monique Chan, Vartika Gupta, Michelle Lang, Charis Seejattan, Siddharth Sirohi, Annie Whangbo
We are in the process of populating the annual conference committee and a membership committee with our volunteer prospects. There are still many volunteer opportunities available including serving on our sub-committees. Click here to volunteer.
In closing, I would like to announce two new CIFST National events. In October, we will host CIFST ALT: A Virtual Showcase on October 27, 2021. CIFST ALT* is a brand-new event that will focus on alternative food products, alternative technologies, and innovative alternatives to how the food industry produces and distributes products to end-users.
I am optimistic for the future of CIFST and the year ahead and would like to thank our staff, directors, volunteers, and most importantly, our members for your ongoing support.
Enjoy the summer, and we will be back with more news in September!
