About Us
About Us
A champion of Canadian cookbooks, Taste Canada inspires readers to discover delicious recipes and diverse food stories written from a Canadian perspective.
Taste Canada brings together Canadian food and beverage writers, publishers, chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, industry, culinary college students, media and cookbook fans, recognizing that food connects us all.
Since 1998, Taste Canada has presented awards to some of the best Canadian cookbook authors and food writers in both official languages. The jury is comprised of volunteers from Canada’s culinary profession appointed by an independent selection committee.
Awards are presented each year at a one-of-a-kind gastronomic Gala in Toronto where food and beverage writers, publishers, chefs, restaurateurs, farmers, industry, post-secondary culinary colleges, media and cookbook fans gather to promote vibrant national conversation about food and the art and culture of culinary writing.
Taste Canada also presents Cooks the Books, a student chef battle.
Taste Canada has honoured hundreds of Canadian-authored books and blogs that have covered an array of topics related to food in both official languages: Canada’s culinary history, culinary narratives, regional and local food stories, seasonal foods and single ingredients, food trends at home and abroad, healthy food and nutrition, and everyday recipes for families.
Taste Canada was founded by Jo Marie Powers, a now-retired professor at the Lang’s School of Hospitality, Food and Tourism Management at Guelph University.
Throughout its history, the University of Guelph has been at the forefront of foodways education and research. Guelph’s Culinary Collections feature an impressive variety of books as well as manuscript and archival resources. With more than 17,000 published volumes, some of which date back to the 17th century, it ranks as one of the largest collections of cookbooks in North America.
“Our food writers, who I believe are the best in the world, deserved recognition. And, it was very important to me to present the awards to books written in English and French.” – Jo Marie Powers
In the early days, the awards (then known as the Canadian Cookbook Awards) had one category – Cookbooks. In the years that followed the categories changed and grew. In 2012, the organization officially became a not-for-profit and was re-named and re-branded. Today, Taste Canada has five categories in both official languages.
“More than just the ingredients we consume, food is a symbol of our shared culture, varied traditions, unique history and heritage. Food is at the heart of the Canadian identity.” – Donna Dooher, Past Chair, Board of Directors
Taste Canada's Mission
To connect, inspire and celebrate Canadians through food and stories rooted in tradition, diversity, and community.
Taste Canada’s Vision
To be the most trusted and respected organization that promotes and celebrates food throughout Canada’s culinary world, both in English and French.
Taste Canada Values
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- Respect – to our team, stakeholders, board of directors and all communities and their people we engage with.
- Diversity and Equality – By providing opportunities of visibility and inclusion to all of those we work and interact with, in both official languages.
- Financial responsibility – By operating within our financial budget and remaining accountable to our sponsors and funders.
- Industry / stakeholder partnerships – By developing meaningful, long-lasting and mutually beneficial partnerships with like- minded industry partners and government agencies.
- Teamwork – By ensuring our work environment is constructive, respectful and rewarding.
Taste Canada’s Organizational Objectives
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- Deliver services, enhanced visibility and programs that benefit French and English-speaking culinary professionals and stakeholders.
- Develop strategic industry and government partnerships that will support our mission.
- Work with national food media to expand audiences for Canadian culinary content and educational programs.
- Develop and deliver a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that will share French and English-language content and resources.
- Grow program offerings that showcases culinary arts.
- Ensure financial sustainability and operational growth.
Our Team
Karen Baxter
Executive Director / Secretary, Board of Directors
With an MBA in Hospitality and Tourism Management, Karen Baxter brings her expertise in event management, public relations and fundraising to Taste Canada. She is a driving force behind Taste Canada’s project management and industry liaison, including building sustainable and long-term industry partnerships, logistics planning, management of the Board of Directors, budget control, organizational financial planning, event planning along with overseeing the details of the gala presentation ceremony, and its affiliated student cooking competition—Taste Canada Cooks the Books.
Jo-Anne Lauzer
Chair, Awards Committee
As a freelance writer and consultant, Jo-Anne Lauzer specializes in collaborating on innovative and creative projects (especially within the world of food). With over 25 years of experience in providing writing and consulting services to individuals, organizations and small businesses, Jo-Anne is a big picture thinker who has an eye for managing complex details. She has successfully collaborated on a variety of cookbook projects and proposals, written cookbook reviews and has tested and edited recipes for various platforms. She is also an avid cookbook collector who enjoys cooking and trying new recipes, and is a seasoned secondhand shopper with a passion for food, community, storytelling, sustainability and reducing waste. As a past judge for Taste Canada, Jo-Anne is excited to join the team as the Chair of the Awards Committee.
Sabrina Falone
Director, Digital Marketing & Cooks the Books
Sabrina Falone is a classically trained chef with a creative and uncomplicated approach to food. With more than 15 years experience, Sabrina has become an industry leader in Food & Beverage marketing. Through recipe and menu development, product innovation, branded storytelling, content creation and live events, Sabrina brings marketing strategies to life. With her flair for trend-tracking and consumer behaviour, Sabrina launched her marketing agency in 2017, SF Creative Culinary Services. She and her team apply their creative energy, big picture thinking and love for all things food, to help clients reach the right customers and serve them better. Sabrina’s passion for cooking started her culinary journey and she has since learned that connecting people through food is her why.
Steven Hellman
Publicist
Steven Hellmann is the founder of award winning The Foodies Group and Little Birdie Media. Steven is an expert in the fields of food, events, and PR/promotions. He has shared his love and expertise for all things tasty on shows such as Breakfast Television, The Social, Cityline, Steven and Chris, and CHCH Morning Live. Steven loves to collaborate and help grow new and inventive businesses, and has spoken about entrepreneurship and innovation at several events including The Ontario Tourism Summit, Toronto Attractions Council, Archangels Den and the Ontario Home Economics Association. Steven’s companies have been recognized by Ontario Culinary Tourism Alliance, Meetings & Incentive Travel, and the Luxury Travel Guide Awards, amongst others, for excellence in catering and events.
Andrea Gallo
Project Coordinator
Andrea Gallo has worked in corporate communications and marketing for over 15 years, now working as a freelance writer, editor and project coordinator. She specializes in crafting engaging editorial content across topics, however, her true passion lies with food and baking. Andrea is a passionate list-maker and loves keeping teams organized and on-task. Andrea provides administrative support for the Taste Canada team while also working as Taste Canada’s Social Media manager, writing and engaging with fellow cookbook lovers on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter!
Board of Directors
Christine Couvelier
Chair
Christine is an Executive Chef, a Culinary Executive, a Global Culinary Trendologist & a Chief Culinary Innovation Officer. Christine keeps ahead of the competition by combining strategic thinking, brand strategies, her creative culinary expertise, idea generation, leadership skills, global trend watch and innovative product development.
What’s a Culinary Trendologist? Christine tours the Globe to taste what is coming next, cooking with chefs, attending food shows, visiting greenmarkets and gourmet retailers. She develops her sought-after Trend Watch Report focusing on emerging, developing and existing trends. With over 35 years of experience, this world-class chef & culinary leader is focused on the future of food. Christine is the Founder & President of Culinary Concierge ~ and is the Chief Culinary Innovation Officer at Trendi.
Christine is the past Executive Chef of President’s Choice, the Director of Culinary & Beverage/Executive Chef at Cara Operations, and the Chair of The Chef School of George Brown College. She worked on Global Innovation for Unilever and was the first Director of Culinary Strategy at Maple Leaf Foods, where she worked on the vision, design & construction of the ThinkFOOD! Centre. Christine is also the co-founder of Teach, Taste, Learn ~ providing leadership training for chefs who are culinary teachers, as well as guidance for culinary schools who need to update their curriculum and methodologies to match to the industry needs.
Michelle Barreto
Director
Michelle is a culinary graduate and accomplished event producer with over 11 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Today, she is the proud owner of a freelancing production company that specializes in orchestrating live events around the globe. Michelle is renowned for capturing VIP experiences, creating interactive chef stations, curating world-class dining, and crafting luxurious ambiances that leave lasting impressions on guests.
Her passion for food and events was ignited at a young age when she volunteered with her family at a local community centre, organizing weekly dinners and dances. This early exposure laid the foundation for her future endeavours, instilling in her a love for bringing people together through exquisite culinary experiences and unforgettable events. With a dedication to excellence and a keen eye for detail, Michelle continues to push the boundaries of event production, delivering unparalleled experiences that combine culinary artistry with elegance and sophistication.
Chef John Higgins
Director
Chef John Higgins is a world-renowned culinary expert who has cooked for the Queen of England at Buckingham Palace, The Royal Yacht Britannia, heads of state in Washington, D.C., and many internationally known celebrities.
He began his career in Glasgow working as an apprentice at a Michelin Star Restaurant, and since immigrating to Canada, at multiple high-end hotels in Toronto.
Chef John Higgins has now taken his culinary talents to mentor and shape the young minds of the food world working as a Chef in Residence at George Brown College Centre for Hospitality & Culinary Arts.
Dorothy Long
Director
Dorothy Long is a champion of Canadian food and farming. As a Saskatchewan farm girl turned Home Economist, she has worked for more than 25 years to promote Canadian-grown foods and the hardworking industry that produces them.
Dorothy has developed and collaborated on a bounty of marketing strategies including CanolaInfo, Cuisine Canada, Growing Saskatchewan, HealthyFlax, Spread the Mustard and Pick Pork. She and her team at BlueSky Ideas continue to inform and inspire consumers, food media, writers, chefs and dietitians from around the world about Canadian food, farmers and agriculture.
Dorothy is currently the Director of Communications with Farm & Food Care Saskatchewan where she spearheads the Canadian Food Focus project – a consumer-friendly website and marketing strategy that recently won a national CAMA Award for Best Website Directed at the Public (2022). Canadian Food Focus has been the culmination of Dorothy’s lifelong mission to build consumers’ understanding, trust and food literacy through sharing stories and information about Canadian farms and food. In recognition of her work, Dorothy will be inducted into the Saskatchewan Agriculture Hall of Fame in April 2023.
Leslie Merklinger
Director
Leslie Merklinger is the Executive Director of CBC Podcast Studios.
An award winning media veteran with over 4 decades in the industry, Leslie’s career began in television as a producer, director and Commissioning Editor working across multiple genres, and in both independent tv production companies and at every major broadcaster in Canada.
Prior to her pivot to audio and arrival at CBC, Leslie led original programming for Food Network Canada where she led dozens of series, including Top Chef Canada, Chopped Canada, Pitchin’ In, Food Factory, Donut Showdown, Bake, Chef School, The Wild Chef and many more.
She founded the CBC Podcast studio in 2015. Under Leslie’s leadership, CBC has become Canada’s #1 Podcast publisher with a slate of more than 70 series, including Someone Knows Something, Fridge Light, Welcome to Paradise, Front Burner, Evil By Design, Pop Chat and Hunting Warhead among many others. CBC’s podcast slate is award winning and critically acclaimed and averages over 16 Million downloads per month.
Leslie holds a Masters in Creative Media Education from the University of Bournemouth, UK, taught at Toronto Metropolitan University and has served as a judge for Taste Canada for several years.
Tara Cartilidge
Treasurer
Tara Cartlidge is the owner of Balanced by the Book. She is in Beamsville, Ontario. Which is located in the Niagara Escarpment wine region. She has been running her ever growing business since 2019. Before that has had over 12 years of experience in the accounting/bookkeeping field, in both the public and private sector.
She has been working with various types of businesses throughout the years. Everything from restaurants to construction companies to daycares. Tara will bring her expertise to the finance side of Taste Canada, helping to maintain the dollar and cents of the business.
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