I hope everyone is having a good start to the Fall season and a smooth transition to the excitement, anticipation and busyness of the academic year, projects at work or on the home front.
Now that the Autumn Equinox, Mid-Autumn Festival, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and other cultural celebrations; as well as contemplative and reflective events including Orange Shirt Day and the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation have been observed, we look forward to spending time with family and friends at Thanksgiving.
CIFST and its regional Sections (British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec) have been busy planning and hosting programming to support member networking and professional development via key industry events such as the Tabletop Suppliers' Events. (see details under Section Events)
Recently, your 2023-2024 Board of Directors met for the first time and received an orientation. They also discussed the implementation of our new Strategic Plan and Priorities, as well as the activities of our Scientific Advisory Panel and Student Committee.
It was an honour to chair my first Section Advisory Council and meet with Section Management Committee volunteers from B.C., Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec and learn about their regional events.
One exciting new initiative is CIFST Interface taking place the morning of November 7th (prior to the Ontario Section Tabletop Suppliers' Event). This is a joint effort between CIFST National and the Ontario Section to bring professional development programming to our members and stakeholders. The agenda includes a procurement track that will feature different commodity groups as well as presentations and discussion panels on supply chains, food fraud, food waste management and the future of food. CIFST views the ability to co-host and co-locate professional development programming with Section events as another way to engage and bring value to our membership.
I was excited to be able to bring greetings from CIFST National to BCFT during their recent virtual AGM and to summarize the “practical vision” of our new Strategic Plan to the local membership. I hope to connect with the Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec Sections in a similar way over the next few months.
It is already proving to be a busy and rewarding year as your CIFST volunteers across Canada work to support the professional development of student, professional and associate members, build partnerships, and work to increase the visibility of the Institute and the expertise of our members. Our success as a professional organization is only possible with the support and volunteerism of our members across Canada in academia, government and industry.
The Student Committee is off and running with representation from most provinces including B.C., Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. In fact, the UBC Food Science Club already hosted an Instagram Takeover at the end of September. Good for them!
The months ahead will be exciting as we learn about the outcome of our AAFC research cluster application which will support innovation and sustainability in the food industry. As well, our Sections and National will continue to bring networking and professional development programming, and professional recognition opportunities to our membership.
CIFST is your/our professional institute, so I hope you will continue to find community, representation and support amongst your fellow members and benefit and grow from your involvement and volunteerism.
Happy Thanksgiving to all as you gather with family, friends and neighbours in your community,
