Bonus Episode: Christine Cruz-Clarke, CEO, Balzacs Coffee
Recorded live in person at the Coffee Association of Canada's The Road Ahead 2022 Annual Conference in Toronto, Sylvain and I sit down with Christine Cruz-Clarke, CEO of Balzacs Coffee Roasters. In a wide-ranging conversation, Christine takes us through her consulting and packaged goods background and the business's origin story, from a coffee cart at Ontario Place to the shelves of significant grocers across Canada and multiple bespoke locations across Ontario. We also talk about their corporate culture and what innovation looks like across their wholesale and retail business.
The Food Professor · Christine Cruz-Clarke
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Show Notes
Recorded live in person at the Coffee Association of Canada's The Road Ahead 2022 Annual Conference in Toronto, Sylvain and I sit down with Christine Cruz-Clarke, CEO of Balzacs Coffee Roasters. In a wide-ranging conversation, Christine takes us through her consulting and packaged goods background and the business's origin story, from a coffee cart at Ontario Place to the shelves of significant grocers across Canada and multiple bespoke locations across Ontario. We also talk about their corporate culture and what innovation looks like across their wholesale and retail business.
About Christine
Christine leads with heart and hustle, and think with infinite possibility to catalyze change.
As the CEO of Balzac’s Coffee Ltd., a vertically integrated premium coffee brand with a sustainable chain of cafés, I oversee all company operations with a focus on building the brand and driving commercial success.
Prior to joining Balzac’s, I spent over 18 years leading businesses and teams in CPG, Management Consulting and Sustainability in both Canada and Europe. I held senior roles with Mars Inc. leading marketing and strategy for the conglomerate’s global gum, mint and chocolate portfolios, and marketing and innovation roles at both The Hershey Company and Wrigley Canada.
Over my career I have learned how to combine commerciality with creativity keeping consumers at the heart of problem solving to help businesses grow. I have tackled a variety of business challenges (turnaround, cost agenda, crisis management) and seized growth opportunities (white space innovation, new business development, emerging channels), while building and growing teams in Canada, UK and Europe.
Prior to joining Balzac’s, I served as the General Manager for TerraCycle Canada, a leader in sustainable solutions which was named as one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential Companies. I have also held marketing and strategy roles with both Kraft Foods and Deloitte.
About Us
Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is a Professor in food distribution and policy in the Faculties of Management and Agriculture at Dalhousie University in Halifax. He is also the Senior Director of the Agri-food Analytics Lab, also located at Dalhousie University. Before joining Dalhousie, he was affiliated with the University of Guelph’s Arrell Food Institute, which he co-founded. Known as “The Food Professor”, his current research interest lies in the broad area of food distribution, security and safety. Google Scholar ranks him as one of the world's most cited scholars in food supply chain management, food value chains and traceability.
He has authored five books on global food systems, his most recent one published in 2017 by Wiley-Blackwell entitled “Food Safety, Risk Intelligence and Benchmarking”. He has also published over 500 peer-reviewed journal articles in several academic publications. Furthermore, his research has been featured in several newspapers and media groups, including The Lancet, The Economist, the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, BBC, NBC, ABC, Fox News, Foreign Affairs, the Globe & Mail, the National Post and the Toronto Star.
Dr. Charlebois sits on a few company boards, and supports many organizations as a special advisor, including some publicly traded companies. Charlebois is also a member of the Scientific Council of the Business Scientific Institute, based in Luxemburg. Dr. Charlebois is a member of the Global Food Traceability Centre’s Advisory Board based in Washington DC, and a member of the National Scientific Committee of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in Ottawa.
Michael LeBlanc is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus Global E-Commerce Tech Talks , The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois and now in its second season, Conversations with CommerceNext! You can learn more about Michael here or on LinkedIn.
Be sure and check out Michael's latest venture for fun and influencer riches - Last Request Barbecue, his YouTube BBQ cooking channel!
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 is a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions hosted senior retail executive on-stage in 1:1 interviews worldwide. Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including The Remarkable Retail Podcast, The Voice of Retail, The Food Professor, The FEED powered by Loblaw and the Global eCommerce Leaders podcast. He has been recognized by the National Retail Federation (NRF) as a global Top Retail Voice for 2025 and 2025, and continues to be a ReThink Retail Top Retail Expert for the fifth year in a row.