Episode Details

Welcome to the The Food Professor, episode No. 4 - I’m Michael LeBlanc along with Sylvain Charlebois!

Hot potatoe issue: Stats. Can reports some pretty startling numbers for increases cost of some products - what's going on here?

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  Carrots, 29%
• Macaroni, 19%
• Potatoes, 16%
• Canned soup, 15%
• Canned tomatoes, 11%."

You say new NAFTA I say CUSMA,  crying over spilled milk, impacts on the dairy and other sectors of the new agreement coming into force July 1, 2020

Totally Baked Idea: from illicit to essential for retail cannabis - has the Zamboni era of recreational cannabis really begun?  April saw month/month slight drop, but year over year, wow dude lots of growth!

Sizing up the increased COVID operating costs: Maple Leaf says its $20 million:  See https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-maple-leaf-foods-says-coronavirus-costs-will-add-up-to-20-million-to/

And Voila - Sobeys  gets in the eCommerce game with a huge investment with OCADO

Check out the Saputo fridge, DTC for consumers in Quebec: https://lefrigosaputo.ca/

Food Fraud on the rise - another gift of COVID-19?

Very first special  Guest: David Marcott, SVP Cross-Industry/Cross-Border and Technology at Kantar Consulting joins us to talk retail tech innovation and balance sheet strategies of the big grocers preparing for the COVId-19 era https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidmarcotte/

If you liked what you heard you can subscribe on Apple iTunes , Spotify or your favourite podcast platform, please rate and review, and be sure and recommend to a friend or colleague in the grocery, foodservice,  or restaurant industry.    I’m Michael LeBlanc, producer and host of The Voice of Retail podcast and a bunch of other stuff, and I’m Sylvain Charlebois,

Stay Safe everyone!!

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