Save the date! May 25, 2023

Join us on May 25, 2023, at Steam Whistle Brewery for Food and Beverage Ontario’s Annual Conference. We are looking forward to the opportunity to meet once again with our members, colleagues and industry partners and to hear from our informative speakers. Our day starts with lunch, followed by three great speakers and we close the day with a two-hour networking session featuring excellent wines from Ontario and Steam Whistle Pilsner!

REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED. PLEASE CONTACT JASON CRAWFORD FOR DETAILS. JCRAWFORD@FOODANDBEVERAGEONTARIO.CA.

Benjamin Tal

Deputy Chief Economist CIBC World Markets Inc.

Mr. Tal is responsible for analyzing economic developments and their implications for North American fixed income, equity, foreign exchange and commodities markets. He also acts in an advisory capacity to bank officers on issues related to wealth management, household/corporate credit and risk.

Well-known for his ground-breaking published research on topics such as labour market dynamics, real estate, credit markets, international trade and business economic conditions, Mr. Tal not only contributes to the conversation, but frequently sets the agenda.

He has close to 20 years’ experience in the private sector advising clients, industry leaders, corporate boards, trade associations, and governments on economic and financial issues.

National and global media regularly seek him out for his insight and analysis on economic issues that impact financial markets, consumers, corporations and public policy. He is also a frequent lecturer in the economic programs of various Canadian universities.

Mr. Tal is a member of the Economic Committee of The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, The Economic Development Committee of the Toronto Board of Trade. He is also a member of the board of Governors of Junior Achievement of Central Ontario, and a board member of the Toronto Financial Services Alliance.

Jesse Hirsch

The Future of Labour: Automation, AI, Training, and Maintenance

As food and beverage processing companies struggle to find staff, automation and technology offers a path towards transforming the workforce, increasing both productivity and profitability.  As companies struggle to keep up and adapt, we have to look at new strategies that share technology and foster local solutions along with developing domestic industry. In this presentation we’ll look at examples of robotics and artificial intelligence that have tremendous potential, but only if we can adopt new strategies and adapt to new opportunities. While the future of labour is heavily automated, it still requires human agency, managed intervention, and maintenance.

Jesse Hirsh is a futurist speaker and internet strategist. An experienced innovator and collaborator, his passion is educating people on the potential benefits and perils of technology. Jesse helps audiences understand what the future holds for them by sharing strategic, provocative and often humorous forward-thinking insights. He makes the discussion about new technology accessible and empowers groups to embrace the opportunities available to them in this technological age, especially at the forefront of sustainable living.

Darrell Bricker

CEO of IPSOS Public Affairs & Expert on National/International Trends

Demographic trends speaker Darrell Bricker is an expert on public opinion, offering audiences an invaluable peek into the future. His presentations are custom-made for your group, combining deep knowledge, powerful insights and a dash of humour. As the CEO of the public opinion research firm IPSOS Public Affairs, he has his finger on the pulse of Canada. He co-authored Empty Planet: The Shock of Global Population Decline, a cautionary tale about looming worldwide demographic shifts and the impact they will have on our economy, social programs and government. In his presentations, he demonstrates how organizations will be dramatically affected by changes to the consumer and labour markets.

Chantal Hébert

Chantal Hébert is a national affairs writer with the Toronto Star and a guest columnist for L’Actualité. She is a weekly participant on the political panel at Issue on the CBC’s The National as well as Radio-Canada’s Les Coulisses du pouvoir on television and Gravel le matin on Montreal radio. Ms Hébert began her career in Toronto as a reporter for the regional newsroom of Radio-Canada in 1975 before moving on to Parliament Hill for Radio-Canada radio. She has served as parliamentary bureau chief for Le Devoir and La Presse.

We are grateful to our sponsors for all their support!

Silver Sponsors

For more details or enquiries on sponsorship, please contact Jason Crawford at jcrawford@foodandbeverageontario.ca.