PROTEIN INDUSTRIES CANADA - Key Persons
Bill's combined passions for agriculture and innovation were the driving forces behind his career. Initially, this led him to private sector jobs at a biotech start-up, in the canola industry and at a large multi-national agriculture company. Bill then transitioned to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, where he worked as a Provincial Oilseed Specialist, Research and Development Manager and Executive Director of Crops and Irrigation Branch before accepting the role of Assistant Deputy Minister, Regulatory and Innovation.
While growing up on a farm and throughout his career, Bill saw first-hand the opportunity for growth in Canada's agriculture industry. As CEO of Protein Industries Canada, Bill helps Canada's plant-protein sector realize this potential by leading the development of Protein Industry Canada's programs, resources and initiatives. His efforts have also helped make the Global Innovation Cluster an instrumental player in the plant-protein landscape.
Job Titles:
- Marketing and Communications Consultant
- Public Relations and Communications Specialist
Celeen is a public relations and communications specialist and a Red River College Creative Communications graduate.
She has done communications work for St. Boniface Hospital and Pembina Trails School Division. Her expertise is comprised of developing communications strategies, managing marketing campaigns, creating content, and copywriting for various platforms.
She loves her cat, Phil, whom she takes care of like a human child.
Job Titles:
- Director of the Regulatory Centre of Excellence
Chris has a PhD in Food and Nutrition Science from the University of Manitoba, and is a registered dietitian with over 10 years of experience across consumer packaged goods and the Canadian agriculture sector.
His expertise includes national and international food regulations, regulatory affairs, and consumer insights and equity for developing strategies and tactics to meet business needs.
Job Titles:
- Director of Program Funding
Prior to joining PIC, Claudia spent over 10 years working as an Accountant for privately held organizations.
Her passion for working with finance and cash flow management was what drew her towards joining the PIC team, as she understands very well the value that a Global Innovation Cluster like Protein Industries Canada can bring to startups and growing companies.
Claudia holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) from the University of Regina, and is a Chartered Professional Accountant.
She is passionate about empowering people through sport, being a proud co-owner of a local CrossFit gym and having served on the Regina YWCA board as Chair of the Audit and Finance Committee.
Clint Celis is an experienced Financial Analyst. His career in the financial industry spans over 10 years of working in research, business, and data analysis.
Previously, he worked at RingCentral, FactSet, MSCI, and JP Morgan Chase & Co.
He has a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy and a Master of Business Administration from Ateneo de Manila University.
Being a newcomer in Canada and the prairie province of Saskatchewan, Clint believes that Protein Industries Canada's vision, mission and drive for the future of food is an exciting and significant industry to be a part of.
Job Titles:
- Director of Project Operations
Cynthia has diverse training and experience in agriculture, aquaculture and education. After completing an M.Sc (Agr) from Dalhousie University, she worked all over North America in the biological sciences and gained comprehensive experience in project development and management, financial planning, outreach, non-profit conservation initiatives and business operations management. Cynthia was the Manager of the Huntsman Fundy Discovery Aquarium from 2016 prior to joining the BioNB team in 2019, where she led Business Support for the bioscience sector in New Brunswick. In her down time, she likes to garden and spend time with her new rescue dog, Pattycake.
Job Titles:
- Business Leader and Consultant
David Donnan is a business leader and consultant with significant global…
David Stirling (BSc., MSc.) has spent his career focused on sustainable development, innovation, and capacity building. With a background in biology, he has applied his skills to various sectors, including forestry, aquaculture, academia, and agriculture.
Throughout his career, David has increasingly worked with Indigenous communities and organizations to develop successful projects. This includes working with the inaugural Aboriginal Aquaculture in Canada Initiative, and through independent consulting. David's passion is working with engaged stakeholders to develop projects that contribute to sustainable economic development.
David's volunteer history includes roles as a coach with Special Olympics Canada, a scout leader with Scouts Canada, and a volunteer fire fighter. David currently resides in Prince Edward Island with his family
Job Titles:
- Corporate Secretary and Executive Assistant to CEO Bill Greuel
Deidre was born and raised on a farm in south-eastern Saskatchewan. She is passionate about agriculture and experiencing different cultures. Before joining Protein Industries Canada, Deidre worked in the Deputy Minister's Office - Agriculture. She comes with over 25 years of administrative experience, working in both the private and public sectors.
Frank Hart (B.A, FCMC) is a recognized leader with extensive executive…
Frank spent more than nine years with Greystone Managed Investments Inc., in the positions of President, Vice-Chair, Managing Director and Chief Risk Officer. Before joining Greystone, he was a management consultant with Optimum Talent (formerly Conroy Ross Partners). He has also been President of EDS Canada, CEO and President of Crown Investments Corporation of Saskatchewan, Vice President of KPMG Consulting, and Deputy Minister of Saskatchewan Economic Development and Trade.
Frank was the Board Chair for Protein Industries Canada since its inception until Sept. 2023. He has been instrumental in uniting diverse stakeholders to advance Protein Industries Canada's vision and prepare the organization for program launch. Frank also serves as Chair of the Board for Economic Development Regina.
Job Titles:
- Experienced Business and Social Development Advisor Known for Successfully / Read Full Bio Link - Arrow - White2
Jacqueline Khayat is a seasoned executive with more than 22 years of experience…
Jamie graduated in 2019 from Red River College with a Business Administration diploma, majoring in Accounting. Prior to joining Protein Industries Canada she was a Finance and Administrative Assistant at the Canola Council of Canada.
Protein Industries Canada's mission is what drew Jamie here. As a former Nutritional Sciences student, the importance of the work done by the team and members aligns with and piques her personal interest.
In her spare time she enjoys travelling and spending time with her dog.
Food of all flavours has been at the core of James' career. Red Seal Chef, grocery store owner, food service consultant, specialty food processor, and so many other courses have been part of his multi-plate career. Most recently, James was the Senior Manager for Food and Beverage Processing for the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries where he led a team supporting a $10.5 Billion sector with capacity building programming, skill development and innovation initiatives.
That varied career has led James to Protein Industries Canada, where he will be building relationships key to the growth of the plant-based food sector.
So, pour a coffee and have a chat. He is looking forward to meeting you.
Jeannette holds a Bachelor of Commerce (BComm) from the University of Saskatchewan, and is a Chartered Professional Accountant.
She grew up on a farm just North West of Prince Albert, SK. She enjoys horseback riding and loves dog sports, being a local competitor herself along her beloved dog Cash.
Job Titles:
- Director of Data and Intellectual Property
Over a legal career spanning more than two decades, Jennifer has advised clients in diverse sectors on offensive and defensive strategic approaches to intellectual property. A past recipient of Best Lawyers in Canada (Intellectual Property) and IAM Strategy 300 (World's Leading IP Strategists), Jennifer has had the privilege of working with domestic and foreign companies in all stages of IP development, commercialization and enforcement. Her past patent work has included, among other things, many food products and food processing technologies.
An Ontario lawyer and registered Canadian Patent Agent, Jennifer has experience in small and large law firms as well as inhouse. She has a particular passion for working with emerging companies to develop strategies for protecting their innovations to compete globally. Jennifer is a published contributor to Lexis Nexis Practice Advisor, a former member of the Patent Examination Board, and a current Chair of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada's Industrial Design Committee.
Jennifer is based in Toronto and her hobbies include vegetarian cooking and beer tasting.
Jennifer leads government & industry relations for Cargill's diverse…
With a focus on building strong relationships, financial management, and reporting, Kassandra works collaboratively with PIC members and ISED to facilitate the administration of the Global Innovation Cluster program.
She holds a Master of Professional Accounting degree and is a Chartered Professional Accountant. Kassandra has worked in the accounting and finance industry for more than 15 years. She has worked in public practice and within the agriculture, manufacturing and retail industries.
Kassandra sits on the RaiseHer Community Board of Directors.
Kathryn Bulmer Matheson serves as Senior Director, Global Foods, Research &…
With a background in statistics and finance, Kay is responsible for Protein Industries Canada's business metrics and database systems management.
Prior to joining Protein Industries Canada, Kay worked as a Research Analyst at Colliers International.
She is passionate about solving problems by processing, manipulating and visualizing complex data using various tools.
Lara has received her master's degree in Food Technology from Wageningen University, The Netherlands. During that time, she worked in Nestlé's R&D center with protein functionality improvement for developing plant-based beverage systems. After that, Lara has worked on developing plant-based seafood for a Swedish start-up. As part of her interest in sustainable food matters, Lara has also recently coordinated the implementation of a food waste diversion project in retail stores across Canada.
Laurel brings over 25 years of experience in Finance, a reflection of her passion for numbers. Prior to joining Protein Industries Canada, Laurel worked as a Budget Analyst at Farm Credit Canada (FCC).
She is a member of Toastmasters International, having received her Distinguished Toastmaster Award in July of 2017.
In her spare time, she enjoys golfing with her husband, knitting, crocheting, and reading.
Laurel also loves Zombie movies and her favorite idea of a vacation is camping with her grandkids.
Lisa is the Director of Programs and Regulatory at Protein Industries Canada, where she works with Protein Industries Canada members to help develop project proposals, provide program guidance, and manage and evaluate ongoing projects. Prior to her time at Protein Industries Canada, Lisa was the Senior Manager, Research & Nutrition at the Canola Council of Canada (CCC) where she was responsible for managing their research programs including the Canola Agri-Science Cluster, Canola Agronomic Research Program (CARP) and various oil and meal projects, as well as working to ensure that research results were effectively disseminated. Previously, Lisa also served as Director of Programs at Pulse Canada.
As Chief Technology Officer, Meghan supports Protein Industries Canada members in growing Canada's plant-protein sector through the development and execution of collaborative technology and capacity building projects. Most recently Meghan was Protein Industries Canada's Director of Intellectual Property, responsible for negotiation of IP strategies in collaborative technology projects. Prior to joining Protein Industries Canada in 2019, Meghan spent nearly 15 years working with Canadian contract research organizations, supporting privately held companies and publicly funded researchers in development of agrifood processing technology. Meghan is a registered Professional Engineer based in Saskatoon, and is a founding member of Saskatchewan's Angels and Friends Foundation.
Melissa is a Finance and Administration professional who recently completed her Payroll Compliance Practitioner certificate from the Canadian Payroll Association.
Prior to joining Protein Industries Canada, she worked in various industries, performing duties such as bookkeeping, payables, and receivables.
She has a young family and three dogs, and like to spend summers between her family's cottage and the farm.
Melissa is truly passionate about the evolving field of agriculture.
She has a BSc degree from the University of Guelph majoring in Environmental Economics & Policy and is a Professional Agrologist (PAg) with the Saskatchewan Institute of Agrologists.
Melissa earned several achievements during her time in 4H including travel across Canada as well as showing her family's purebred Gelbvieh cattle.
Melissa was involved with national livestock traceability through various roles both within the Saskatchewan Government and the Canadian Dairy industry.
Job Titles:
- Director of Marketing and Communications
Miranda Burski developed her skillset thanks to her work in both the journalism and communications sectors. She spent the early part of her career developing her writing, editing, and layout skills as a features writer at the Regina Leader-Post, and further fine-tuned them when she moved into the role of communications consultant with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. Her work with the Ministry of Agriculture also helped her develop her skills in digital marketing. Miranda holds of Bachelor of Arts, Journalism, degree from the University of Regina.
Murad Al-Katib (MBA) is the President and CEO of AGT Food and Ingredients Inc.…
Navjot earned her masters from the University of Manitoba focusing on investigating the effect of heat treatments on the functionality of pulses and grains.
After finishing her studies, Navjot worked as a Product Commercialization Consultant in the Department of Agriculture with the Government of Manitoba. Navjot has managed several projects on lab trials and pilot plant scale-up of protein extraction, lexicon development, market research and capacity building under the Manitoba Protein Advantage Strategy. Navjot has also worked on developing plant-based meat analogues, sports drinks and dairy alternates and introduced new service lines in the laboratories. Demonstrating her interest in research and academia, Navjot contributed to designing the new post-secondary courses for Assiniboine Community College to address Manitoba's food processing labour shortage.
Navjot is passionate about fostering innovation in protein ingredients and products to enable the agriculture and food industry in Canada to grow rapidly. In her spare time, Navjot loves to go for hikes explore nature's beauty and play badminton.
Before joining Protein Industries Canada, Sai worked in the Advanced Research and Technology team within the R&D Department at Daiya Foods, heading their Lab team. He completed the innovation center expansion at Daiya's new facility during his time and successfully led some of their new technology development projects. With a Ph.D. from McGill University, he brings an immense wealth of knowledge in plant protein functionality and protein quality improvement using novel processing methods. He published over 40 peer-reviewed articles on protein chemistry, food processing, food allergies and bioinformatics.
As a Program Specialist at Protein Industries Canada, he will be helping our members develop and manage technology projects.
Job Titles:
- Marketing and Communications Consultant
Sarah is a multidisciplinary communications professional with an interest in sharing stories in an accessible and interactive way.
After starting her communications career in the not-for-profit sector, Sarah began working on the strategy team of a leading advertising and marketing agency in Manitoba - where she had the opportunity to work on content marketing and branding projects for agriculture clients.
Sarah holds a diploma in Creative Communications from Red River College.
Steph works with Protein Industries Canada's members to execute projects and navigate challenges while ensuring they get the critical project support they need. She has a passion for innovative projects and has led a wide range of past assignments from technology implementations to product launches and quality improvements.
Steph has worked on numerous local projects and events, such as Saskatchewan Fashion Week and the 101 st Grey Cup Festival. Knowing firsthand that the prairie provinces have a lot to offer, Steph hopes to help showcase PIC and its members to the rest of the world.
She has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Regina and a Project Management Professional (PMP) designation. In her spare time, you can find her at a local pub watching CFL Football with her husband.
As CMO, Tiffany is responsible for member engagement, brand management and strategic communications to support Protein Industries Canada in their goals of growing the value-added processing sector in Western Canada, with a focus on creating plant-protein based products and co-products. With more than 15 years marketing, communication and stakeholder engagement experience, Tiffany has led multiple provincial marketing campaigns, including the province's agriculture awareness campaign #ourfoodhasastory. Originally from a grain farm in southwest Saskatchewan, Tiffany has called Regina home since 2004. She is a member of the Regina Exhibition Association Ltd. Board of Directors.
Tyler is the Chair of the Board of Directors. As the North America Director for…