Text by Nicolas Heffernan Food nutrition has come a long way since Nathalie Lambert was winning Olympic medals for Canada. The Montreal native won speed skating gold in the Albertville games and two silvers in Lillehammer but her career was nearly derailed by a vitamin deficiency. “For two years when I was skating I was iron-deficient and I had anemia …

A TEAM OF MCGILL MBA STUDENTS WINS THE PRESTIGIOUS HULT PRIZE FOR USING INSECTS TO HELP SOLVE THE GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS Text by Nicolas Heffernan The answer to securing food for the impoverished and undernourished: grasshoppers, palm weevils, caterpillars, and water beetles. Don’t worry if it takes you aback, it took the captain of the team who is bringing the …

EMERGING DEMAND FROM ASIA, CHANGING CONSUMER DEMOGRAPHICS AND HEALTH-CONSCIOUS SHOPPERS WILL SHAPE CANADIAN BUSINESS NEXT YEAR Text by Nicolas Heffernan It won’t be easy but 2014 could be a good year for the Canadian agri-food industry. “I’m actually quite bullish on Canada,” says Dave Donnan, partner and leader of Global Food and Beverage Sector Practice for A.T. Kearney, a global …

PROVIGO WINS PHÉNIX DE L’ENVIRONNEMENT AWARD WITH SUSTAINABILITY PROGRAM By Nicolas Heffernan One of its biggest challenges turned into a big reward for Provigo, a member of Loblaw Companies Ltd. Loblaw has been working since 2009 to sell only sustainable seafood in stores by 2013 with its Oceans for Tomorrow program. “Gaining consumer engagement on sustainable seafood has been one …

By Nicolas Heffernan When Isabel Hoffmann’s daughter got sick, she had to make a lot of difficult decisions. With her child bedridden for more than a year because of severe food allergies, Hoffmann quit her job as CEO of a technology company to care for her daughter. When she found her daughter was also allergic to the mold in the …

An interview with Gerry Ritz By Nicolas Heffernan What’s your vision for agriculture in Canada going forward? Well it’s a great time to be in agriculture. The optimism of farmers and the entire value chain is quite high. I’ve had the great opportunity to attend a lot of the annual meetings of the different green commodities, the livestock sector and …

Focus on development leads to success By Nicolas Heffernan When it came to R&D, Ultima Foods focused much more on development instead of research when it was launching its new brand, iögo. “We spent a huge amount of money on development rather than research,” says Gerry Doutre, President and CEO of Ultima Foods. “If you want to talk about pure …

Twenty-five years of studies has confirmed that canola oil reduces the risk of heart disease and suggests that it may also protect against other chronic diseases. A comprehensive review of scientific evidence over the last quarter-century shows consuming canola oil instead of other fat sources enhances health and can help consumers comply with expert dietary fat recommendations, as analyzed in …

Atrium Innovations Inc. announced today that it has extended its research partnership with the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF). The original program was launched in June 2011 and funded through the end of 2013. Atrium extended the collaboration until 2016. “We continue to see direct returns from this program in stimulating innovative product development, including the introduction of …

Eighty-four per cent of Canadians believe the food they typically purchase has increased in price over the past year, according to the quarterly RBC Canadian Consumer Outlook Index. With rising food prices eating into their household budgets, an overwhelming majority of Canadians (91 per cent) say they will tighten their belts and make smarter decisions when purchasing food. The survey …