The BC Food Protection Association (BCFPA) - Student Professional Development Group would like to present:

2023 Student Networking Event - A Career Night with Industry Food Professionals

EVENT SUMMARY:

The BC Food Protection Association - Student Professional Development Group is thrilled to host a hybrid in-person and virtual talk and an in-person networking event. Each speaker will give a 20-minute interactive talk about their career paths, which aims to support students’ career development.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/559154565357

SPEAKERS: Representatives in the Food Industry

Speaker #1: Lavina Gully | Regional Innovation Director (BC), Canadian Food Innovation Network (CFIN)

Career Topics: Functional Foods and Research and Development

Lavina is a food scientist and product developer with over 15 years of experience in R&D, process development, and ideation. She has worked in various industries such as bakery, soups, beverages, plant-based nutrition, and meat alternatives, and has launched numerous new products into club, retail, and food service channels.

She loves the multi-disciplinary aspect of R&D and started her career immersed in ingredient functionality, process engineering, quality systems, packaging, and scale-up. Prior to joining CFIN, Lavina was responsible for exploring the fuzzy front end of the innovation process and developing long-range strategies for consumer-led product concepts.

In addition to her R&D experience, she has also worked as an SR&ED consultant, servicing CPG and agri-food businesses across British Columbia, and, as a food technology instructor at BCIT.

Lavina hopes to draw upon her hands-on industry and manufacturing experience to help businesses achieve innovation goals. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and a Master of Food Science from the University of British Columbia.

Speaker #2: Jeffrey Ma | Senior R&D Manager, Daiya Foods Inc.

Career Topic: Plant-Based Foods (Cheese) and Research and Development

Jeffrey Ma has spent the past 11 years in food product development and innovation. Growing up in his parent’s restaurant, he has always been fascinated by how good food can be a commonality that connects people through shared experiences. With a food science and business background, he’s interested in creating natural products that merge what is possible with what consumers want. He believes a winning product merges great branding and a technical advantage that addresses a key consumer need. He’s constantly interested in how businesses can both do well and do good through their brand and products.

Jeffrey received his education from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Food Science and an MBA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. He is currently the Senior R&D Manager at Daiya Foods, a pioneering brand in the plant-based food space, leading the development of next-gen plant-based cheese. His previous experience includes Innovation roles at small and large companies including Vega (Danone), Pure Sunfarms, and Komo Comfort Foods.

DATE: March 3rd, 2023

TIME: 5:30 pm PT - 7:30 pm PT

IN-PERSON LOCATION: SE06 Room 207, British Columbia Institute of Technology, 3700 Willingdon Avenue, Burnaby, BC V5G 3H2

VIRTUAL OPTION: via Zoom - registrants will be sent a Zoom link 1-2 days before the actual event

FEE: Free for students!!

Note: Networking and Snack time will be held IN-PERSON.

SCHEDULE:

5:30 - 6:00 pm PT: Registration

6:00 - 6:05 pm PT: Welcome Remark & Introduction about BCFPA

6:05 - 7:00 pm PT: 15 min presentation + 5 min Q&A for each speaker (Hybrid)

7:00 - 7:30 pm PT: Networking & Snack time (In-person)

For any questions, contact our SPDG coordinator: scottbenjaminwilson97@gmail.com