Event

Registration and breakfast: 7:30 a.m.
Panel discussion & Q&A: 8:00-10:00 a.m.
Location: Ivey's ING Direct Leadership Centre, Exchange Tower (King & York St.), Toronto

Tickets: $20 per person, $15 current student rate

Ontario’s food industry is now the largest manufacturing employer in the province. However, the industry is challenged by a high Canadian dollar, lagging productivity, higher input costs and the need to respond to customer demands for health and sustainability in their products and processes. Concerns over future water resources and sustainability are causing the industry to rethink its practices, but any changes must also contribute to profitability.

David Sparling, Chair of Agri-Food Innovation and Regulation at Ivey, will provide context on the industry and the role of innovation in industry competitiveness. Dianne Cunningham, Director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management at Ivey, and Kevin Jones, President and CEO of The Bloom Centre for Sustainability (BLOOM), will share findings from their recent forums with leaders from industry, government and academia on strategies to improve water innovation and industry profitability in Ontario’s agri-food sector, and discuss the priorities for enhancing food industry innovation and competitiveness. Helmi Ansari, MBA ’02, Director Sustainability and Productivity, PepsiCo Foods Canada, will share his insights on the competitive market environment and how his company is implementing sustainability practices to improve its bottom-line.

*Read the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management’s new water report.

1. What steps are needed to make Canada more competitive in terms of water technology and innovations in the agri-food sector?
2. How do we encourage agriculture and food processors to move toward resource-efficient and closed-loop, sustainable operations?
3. How do we bring scientists, industry representatives, and decision-makers together to develop integrated programs for water quality and quantity management?

HELMI ANSARI, DIRECTOR SUSTAINABILITY AND PRODUCTIVITY, PEPSICO FOODS CANADA

Helmi Ansari is Director Sustainability and Productivity, PepsiCo Foods Canada. He is responsible for leading the company’s aggressive agenda on environmental sustainability, strategic financial planning, annual operating and productivity plan development, and Continuous Improvement for operations. A supply chain professional, Ansari has worked in manufacturing supply chain and more than a dozen food and pharmaceutical manufacturing plants across North America. He started his career in pharmaceutical manufacturing, and progressed to the food industry, working with world leaders PepsiCo and H.J. Heinz.  At PepsiCo and H.J. Heinz, Ansari has led manufacturing plants with staff of up to 800 people. He has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arkansas, an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business, and is currently working on his PhD in Business with a thesis in Sustainability. Ansari is a frequent speaker on Environmental Sustainability and Sustainable Supply chains, at colleges, universities, and open seminars. He and his wife have three daughters, and reside in Cambridge Ontario.

DIANNE CUNNINGHAM, DIRECTOR, THE LAWRENCE NATIONAL CENTRE FOR POLICY AND MANAGEMENT

Dianne Cunningham is Director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management at the Richard Ivey School of Business, which provides a forum for private sector corporations, media and academia to work with government and actively participate in public policy issues for the greater good of Canada as a competitor in the global marketplace. She has more than 30 years of experience in education and government affairs. Cunningham is the former Ontario Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, and Minister with Responsibility for Women’s Issues. She chaired the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, and was the Member of Provincial Parliament for the riding of London North Centre (1988-2003). As the Director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management, Cunningham’s extensive knowledge of both government and education strengthens Ivey’s continuing leadership position as one of the world’s top business schools, and builds upon its continuing efforts to further public policy research. She is a member of the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy, a member of the Board of Governors of the Canada School of Public Service, Chair of the Ontario Neuro-Trauma Foundation, and Tri-Chair of the 2010 Special Olympics Canada, National Summer Games, London. Cunningham serves on the board of the London Grand Theatre Foundation, is a member of the Southwest Ontario Economic Alliance, and Junior Achievement, London and District. She is the recipient of the YWCA Women of Distinction Award, and holds Honourary Degrees and many other tributes, locally and nationally.

KEVIN JONES, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE BLOOM CENTRE FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Kevin Jones is the President and CEO of The Bloom Centre for Sustainability (BLOOM), a private company that takes a practical and business-oriented approach to enable change, motivate action and advance the market adoption of sustainable solutions, to create economic, social and environmental value. Jones has more than 24 years of diversified experience in the private and public sector. He has provided leadership on several award-winning projects in sustainability and innovation. In 2009, he played an instrumental role in the first-ever analysis and report on Ontario’s clean technology sector. In 2010, in collaboration with XPV Capital, he led the preparation of The Water Opportunity for Ontario report to position Ontario as a global leader in water technologies and sustainable water use. He is currently leading projects to enable change and advance the adoption of sustainable solutions in the Ontario food and beverage processing sector. Jones has an Executive MBA from Athabasca University, a Master of Science in Environmental Planning from the University of Toronto, and an Honours B.A. from McMaster University.

DAVID SPARLING, PROFESSOR AND CHAIR OF AGRI-FOOD INNOVATION AND REGULATION, RICHARD IVEY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

David Sparling is Professor and Chair of Agri-Food Innovation and Regulation at Ivey, which is funded by the Ontario Agricultural Adaptation Council. Before joining Ivey, he was a professor at the University of Guelph, where he was also an associate dean and Executive Director of the Institute of Agri-Food Policy Innovation. He is also a Senior Associate at the University of Melbourne and has taught at the Australian Graduate School of Management and McMaster University. Sparling farmed for nearly 20 years near Cambridge, Ontario and has been president of an agribusiness insurance company and a biotechnology startup. He is actively involved in shaping agri-food industry strategies and government policy.