Canada Impact+ Research Chair in Transformative & Translational Food Manufacturing Technologies

Position Title / Rank: Canada Impact+ Research Chair in Transformative & Translational Food Manufacturing Technologies

Department: Food Science 

Position Description:
 

The Canada Impact+ Research Chairs (Impact+) program is a one-time initiative designed to support institutions in attracting world-leading researchers whose work addresses critical national and global challenges. The program emphasizes both research excellence and tangible impact. Impact+ Chairs will receive long-term funding and institutional support to advance ambitious and transformative projects in Canada’s strategic priority areas, build and maintain exceptional research teams, and collaborate with partners across sectors and borders. Impact+ chairholders are expected to drive the translation of discoveries into applications, commercialization and social and economic benefits for Canada and the world, while also developing the next generation of highly qualified personnel.

The Impact+ program provides opportunities for internationally renowned scholars and scientists in areas of strategic importance to Canada. Only candidates who are internationally based (both working and residing outside of Canada) at the time of the intake’s application deadline are eligible to apply.

Nominees must be full professors or associate professors or, if recruited from outside the academic sector, must possess the necessary qualifications to be appointed at these levels.

Canada Impact+ Research Chair in Transformative & Translational Food Manufacturing Technologies

The Ontario Agricultural College is recruiting a Canada Impact+ Research Chair in Transformative & Translational Food Manufacturing Technologies, at an award value of $1,000,000/year, of which a minimum of $700k/year will be available to fund the direct costs of the research activities of the chairholder and their team. The term is for 8 years, with a possibility for a four-year funded extension, at 50% of the original award value. The funding supports expenses related to compensation, as well as research activities for the chairholder and the chairholder’s team, and up to 25% of the direct costs of research can be used for indirect costs of research.

The Chair in Transformative & Translational Food Manufacturing is aligned with the federal strategic priority area of food security. It addresses a critical and widely recognized gap between discovery-driven food research and successful implementation in manufacturing environments. While Canada has strong capabilities in food chemistry, formulation science, and product innovation, many promising technologies fail to progress beyond laboratory or pilot scale due to unresolved challenges related to scale-up, process stability, manufacturability and market readiness. This Chair will focus on the fundamental scientific and engineering principles that govern this transition, strengthening Canada’s capacity to translate food innovation into robust, scalable food manufacturing.

This Chair establishes translational food manufacturing as a distinct scholarly field with its own rigorous scientific foundations and direct relevance to industrial practice. The Chair will operate at the interface of discovery science and industrial reality, emphasizing translational research that is fundamentally rigorous yet informed by real production environments. The position will not focus on product or process design or incremental formulation, but rather on the enabling principles that determine whether technologies can be scaled, reproduced, and deployed reliably. By engaging closely with Ontario and Canadian food manufacturers of different commodities (e.g., dairy, cereals) in a pre-competitive framework, strategically using key available facilities, such as the Guelph Food Innovation Center (GFIC), the Chair will align academic inquiry with manufacturing needs while preserving academic independence.

Institutionally, the Chair complements the University of Guelph’s established strengths in food chemistry, product development, food safety, fundamental food science, and food processing by focusing explicitly on the science of scale-up and manufacturing translation. Nationally, the Chair aligns with Canadian priorities in agri-food innovation, advanced manufacturing, and industrial competitiveness, while maintaining a pre-competitive, research-driven orientation. By training highly qualified personnel with a deep understanding of manufacturing constraints, the Chair will contribute to a more resilient, innovative, and globally competitive Canadian food sector.

The ideal candidate is an outstanding international researcher with a strong quantitative background and the University of Guelph requires a Ph.D. in food science, food engineering, materials science, chemical engineering, or a closely related discipline. The successful applicant will have an established record of research excellence, recognized internationally, will show credible evidence of translational impact, such as granted or filed patents, documented industrial collaboration, or demonstrated experience moving beyond laboratory proof-of-concept. The successful candidate will be motivated to build an independent research program that integrates fundamental science with manufacturing constraints, and will communicate effectively with both academic and industrial stakeholders.

The program’s evaluation criteria are:

• Research/academic merit and leadership skills of the nominee
• Quality of the institutional support
• Quality of the research program
• Potential contribution to the excellence of the Canadian and international research ecosystem
• Potential for knowledge translation, mobilization and application of research results

The Government of Canada values knowledge mobilization, translation and commercialization as critical pathways to ensuring research delivers tangible benefits at both national and global levels. Impact+ Chairs are expected to move beyond discovery to generate social, economic and policy impacts, working in close collaboration with partners across various sectors.

Successful nominees will have the primary responsibility for directing the research program and all related activities, leading a team of personnel, and coordinating governance and administration with the host institution.

Join Us in Shaping our Community

The University of Guelph recognizes that an inclusive campus and a culture of inclusion are an institutional and social imperative. Acknowledging the University’s diverse population and ensuring that every member of an inclusive campus is a valued contributor is a foundational pillar of a successful post-secondary institution. The University of Guelph is committed to fostering an inclusive, innovative, and collaborative environment. In the Department of Food Science, we value diversity and inclusivity because we know that diversity in experiences and perspectives is vital to advancing innovation, critical thinking, complex problem solving, and the creation of a modern, representative academic community.

The University of Guelph resides on the traditional lands and territory of the Anishinaabeg, Haudenosaunee and Huron Wendat. These lands are now home to a rich diversity of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people. We offer our respect and gratitude to our Indigenous neighbours and affirm our responsibility to realize our commitments to reconciliation through ongoing action. We are guided in this work by Bi-Naagward | It Comes into View, the Indigenous Initiatives Strategy.

The Impact+ program reflects the Canadian federal government’s commitment to equity and diversity in employment. It aims to ensure the appropriate representation of women and gender minorities, persons with disabilities, Indigenous people, and racialized people. 

Application Process

The Impact+ nomination process consists of two stages. First, candidates apply to an open job posting at the University of Guelph. The U of G will then support the successful candidate in the development of an application for the federal funding program. Appointment to an Impact+ Chair position is contingent upon receiving an Impact+ Chair award. Awardees must begin their appointment within 12 months of accepting the award.

RECOMMENDED COMPONENTS OF APPLICATION

1. Cover letter that identifies alignment of research with the federal strategic priority
2. Curriculum vitae 
3. Brief description of the proposed research program, including a description of how equity, diversity and inclusion have been incorporated into research design and research team and how your research will contribute to knowledge translation, mobilization and application of research results. (maximum four pages)
4. Career highlights describing the most significant contributions to the applicant’s field, including how they have led to societal benefits, and how they connect with your research plan. (Maximum two pages)
5. The names and email addresses of three references, two of which are arm’s length (not in conflict of interest) 

The University encourages applications from individuals from all underrepresented, equity-seeking, rights-seeking populations, including racialized individuals, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities, women, and individuals from the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

The University of Guelph recognizes life circumstances such as illness, disability, family and community responsibilities (e.g., maternity leave, parental leave, leaves due to illness, leaves due to caring for family members, slowdowns due to chronic illness or disability, or COVID-19 impacts) are often an expected part of life and are likely to have an impact on a nominee’s record of research achievement, and that these impacts will be taken into careful consideration during the assessment process. 

The University of Guelph is committed to ensuring all applicants have fair and equitable participation in the hiring process. If you anticipate needing medical accommodations during the recruitment or selection processes, confidential assistance is available on request by contacting Dr. Lisa Duizer at lduizer@uoguelph.ca, ++1-519-824 4120 extension 53410.

Date Posted: 12/23/2025
Deadline: 01/22/2026 or until a suitable candidate is found.

This position is represented by the University of Guelph Faculty Association (UGFA). 

The University of Guelph commits to fostering inclusive excellence through promoting Indigenization, equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. Inclusion is a core pillar of Our Time, our strategic plan, which pledges to “transform our human resources, governance and student services and practices across the University to enable us to recruit a diverse student, faculty and staff body and support them in achieving their personal, professional and scholarly goals.” The University commits to creating and maintaining “equitable work environments that empower us in our pursuit of student, faculty and staff success, research excellence, innovation and impact.” 

The University of Guelph invites applications from all qualified individuals. We strongly welcome and encourage applications from members of designated groups in employment, including Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, racialized persons, women, and 2SLGBTQIA+ persons. 

The University of Guelph recognizes that career paths can be diverse and career interruptions may occur. We encourage applicants to note in their applications whether they would like considerations given to the impact of any circumstances, such as (but not limited to) those due to health and/or family reasons, that may have affected an applicant’s record of achievement. You are not required to disclose these circumstances in the hiring process. If you choose to do so, the University will ensure that these circumstances do not negatively impact the assessment of your qualifications for the position. 

The University of Guelph is committed to ensuring all applicants have fair and equitable participation in the hiring process. If you anticipate needing medical accommodations during the recruitment or selection processes, confidential assistance is available on request by contacting Occupational Health and Wellness at 519-824-4120 x52674. If you have any questions regarding accommodations or accessibility during the hiring process or for more information and support, please visit the University’s Occupational Health and Wellness or contact OHW at ohw@uoguelph.ca.