Ottawa’s Creative Accounting, Avoiding AI-Powered Hacks and a Calgary Big BBQ Win in Tennessee plus guest David Usher, Founder and Frontman, Moist on Winning the Future with Creativity
The Food Professor · Nov 13, 2026 · 56:20
The Food Professor · Nov 13, 2026 · 56:20
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The mood on the conference floor was far more optimistic than a year ago. Consumers are still buying coffee, AI dominated the hallway talk, and companies are looking for ways to innovate. Affordability and a fragmented market remain open questions.
Sylvain explains why diesel drives grocery prices, and why seven to eight million middle-class households have less left over than they did a decade ago.
On the news desk: the Carney government’s budget and Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne’s split between operational and investment spending. Sylvain argues it could blur how Canada reports support for agriculture and invite trade scrutiny. Plus a new $124-million fund for food hubs, Nutrien’s plan to ship potash through Washington State, and whether exports routed through the U.S. are inflating Canada–U.S. trade figures.
The hosts also split on two questions: can grocers secure connected systems after Europe’s supermarket cyberattacks, and does Fresh Prep’s purchase of Goodfood prove anyone can make money on meal kits?
Topics include:
About Us
Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Professor in Food Distribution and Policy in the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University in Halifax. He is also the Senior Director of the Agri-food Analytics Lab, also located at Dalhousie University.
Known as “The Food Professor”, his current research interest lies in the broad area of food distribution, security and safety. He is one of the world’s most cited scholars in food supply chain management, food value chains and traceability with over 775 published peer-reviewed journal articles. Dr. Charlebois is also an editor for the prestigious Trends in Food Science Technology journal.
He co-hosts The Food Professor podcast, discussing issues in the food, foodservice, grocery and restaurant industries and which is the most listened Canadian management podcast in Canada.
Every year since 2012, he has published the now highly anticipated Canadian Food Price Report, which provides an overview of food price trends for the coming year. Furthermore, his research has been featured in several newspapers and media groups, nationally as well as internationally. He has testified on several occasions before parliamentary committees on food policy-related issues as an expert witness. He has been asked to act as an advisor on food and agricultural policies in many Canadian provinces and other countries.
With extensive experience collaborating with businesses, governments, and NGOs, Dr. Charlebois combines academic rigor with practical expertise, making him one of the most influential voices in the global agri-food landscape. His work continues to advance the understanding of food systems, fostering innovation and resilience in a rapidly evolving industry. In 2025, he received the prestigious Charles III medal recognizing his tremendous work in informing Canadians about food issues.
Michael LeBlanc is a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions hosted senior retail executive on-stage in 1:1 interviews worldwide. Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including The Remarkable Retail Podcast, The Voice of Retail, The Food Professor, The FEED powered by Loblaw and the Global eCommerce Leaders podcast. He has been recognized by the National Retail Federation (NRF) as a global Top Retail Voice for 2025 and 2026, and continues to be a ReThink Retail Top Retail Expert for the fifth year in a row.
