Episode Details

Welcome to our Summer SIAL Special bonus episodes of The Food Professor podcast, brought to you by our friends at Caddle! In this episode, meet Michi Furuya Chang, Executive Vice President, Public Policy & Regulatory Affairs, FHCP.

As the official podcast for the SIAL Food Innovation show this year in Montreal, Sylvain and I had the opportunity to interview the leading thought leaders, brands, and makers in the food industry. As the saying goes, these are their stories.

Stay tuned for season five of The Food Professor #podcast, debuting August 29th. We'll be back on the mic together live with our particular brand of truth, insight, interviews, custom research from our friends at Caddle, and a little bit of fun!

The Food Professor #podcast is presented by Caddle. 

Join us at the Coffee Association of Canada's Annual Conference Thursday, November 12th, 2026
at Angus Glen in Toronto (Markham)

Are you ready for the Next Wave? Get Your Tickets Here

This year’s conference will bring together leaders from across the industry for a day of bold conversations, market insights, networking and inspiration, focused on the ideas, people and innovations shaping the future of coffee in Canada.

Don’t miss Canada’s premier coffee industry event — we sell out every year!

About Us

Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Visiting Professor in Food Policy and Distribution at McGill University and 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 o