Arrell Food Summit
Hosted by Arrell Food Institute, the Arrell Food Summit is a signature annual event that convenes leaders and experts from across the agri-food sector—including industry, production, non-profits, government, policy, and academia—to network, share insights, and explore solutions for building a safer, more sustainable global food system.
Learn about past and future Arrell Food Summits below.
2025
Resilience Reimagined
The 8th annual Arrell Food Summit, titled “Resilience Reimagined: Redesigning Food Systems for a Change World” will be taking place on October 21st, 2025 at The Globe and Mail Centre in Toronto, Ontario.
Save the date and stay tuned on our social media platforms as details are announced including registration information, keynote speakers, event agenda, and more.
2024
Fueling Innovation Through Food
The 2024 Arrell Food Summit took place on October 16 and was FAO‘s Official North American World Food Day 2024 event in partnership with Food Tank.
We were privileged to host food system experts from diverse sectors, all coming together to tackle the pressing challenges facing our global food systems. The day was filled with insightful discussions, meaningful connections, and valuable takeaways that will guide future efforts to create more sustainable, equitable, and resilient food systems.
2023
Pathways to Change
At the Arrell Food Summit: Pathways to Change we dove into impactful solutions to current challenges facing the agri-food sector and learned from topic experts on what we can expect next in terms of emerging priorities and innovations.
2022
The Future of Food
The global food system is pressured by demands of a growing population, and we need to find and implement solutions to feed our population while protecting our planet.
The fifth annual Arrell Food Summit brought together more than 300 perspectives remotely and in-person to dig deeper into what these challenges are and how we can address them together.
2021
Turning Ideas into Action
Arrell Food Institute hosted the 4th Arrell Food Summit, the second hosted digitally. Welcoming over 350 attendees, the Summit featured an agenda of international speakers who explored how to turn ideas into action and accelerate food systems change. Chefs Rich Francis and Joshna Maharaj encouraged participants to use food as a tool to shake up colonial and unhealthy institutions, while Maple Leaf Food’s Nadia Theodore shared how to bridge gaps between government, industry, and others on progressive food policy.
2020
Thriving Beyond 2020
2020 was a year like no other. 2020’s Summit sparked conversations around moving forward, building resilience and thriving following the year’s events. Agri-food leaders explained how they adapted to changing circumstances and shared how the pandemic and cultural shifts are opportunities to thrive in 2021 and beyond.
2019
Canada’s Role
At the Summit we heard from both speakers and attendees that the food system challenges we’re all facing are incredibly complex. Climate change and its devastating impact on production, the weaponization of trade, inequality, colonialism and a lack of resources invested in the food system all stood out. But as we are sure the attendees will agree, it was not a conversation filled with gloom. There are also opportunities to meet these challenges. Canada can be a world leader in the production of safe, healthy and sustainable food. We heard about how technology can reduce agriculture’s environmental footprint and how institutions, communities and individuals can be agents of change. Overwhelmingly, we heard that collaboration and cooperation are the way forward
2018
Agri-Food Innovation
The first Arrell Food Summit took place May 22-24, 2018 in Guelph and Toronto. The Summit was an opportunity to celebrate innovation in agriculture and food through dynamic speakers and deserving laureates of the Arrell Global Food Innovation Awards.