Sylvain Charlebois is a Canadian researcher and professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. He is a former dean of the university's Faculty of Management.[1]
Charlebois, who goes by the moniker "The Food Professor," is the director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University. Since December 2010, he has been the lead author of Canada's Food Price Report.
Career
Charlebois was a professor at the University of Guelph from 2010 to 2016.[2] In 2016, he was named dean of the Faculty of Management at Dalhousie University.[1] In 2018, Charlebois became the director of Agri-food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie, after resigning as dean following an investigation into complaints involving harassment and bullying. Following Charlebois's resignation, a university spokesman stated that the conclusions of the investigation would remain confidential but that "no further action" would be taken in relation to the investigation.[3][4]
Charlebois writes a blog for Canadian Grocer magazine called "The Food Professor,"[5] and is a co-host of the podcast titled "The Food Professor."[6]
In January 2023 Charlebois penned a commentary on the increase in theft from supermarkets, and how it raises costs for grocers and leads to higher grocery prices.[13][14][15]
The piece, and a Twitter post, was met with criticism, and debate about the morality of food theft.[16][17]
Twitter users drew attention to Charlebois' salary from Dalhousie University, and his receipt of a $60,000 grant in 2018 from the Weston Foundation, which is funded by Weston Family companies that include Loblaws, one of Canada's largest grocery retailers.[18][19]
In response, Charlebois said the grant went to Dalhousie University and was used to pay a graduate student; and that people are upset with grocers since, with food inflation over 10 percent, "they're looking for a scapegoat."[13][18]
^ ab"Sylvain Charlebois". School of Public Administration Dalhousie Faculty of Management. Dalhousie University. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.