Plant-Based Foods of Canada (PBFC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Michael Lines, Founder, President & CEO of Wellness Natural Inc. to PBFC Advisory Board Chair. Michael previously held the position of Vice-Chair.
Michael has long been a supporter of PBFC having been instrumental in the launch of the PLANT EMPowered program providing masterclass style events for PBFC members to learn from a broad range of industry experts. This in addition to his participation on the Advisory Board, leading the Mentorship Committee and as a key contributor to PBFC’s three-year strategic plan which was just completed charting our priorities and path forward.
Michael is acknowledged as a strong leader in the industry having spent many years in the natural and traditional consumer packaged goods space. In 2020 he founded Wellness Natural Inc., a natural foods company headquartered in Canada, and acquired the SimplyProtein plant-based nutritional snacking brand from Simply Good Foods USA, who he had previously worked for. Since the acquisition, Michael, and his team have been cultivating the brand throughout Canada, the US and select international markets.
Michael replaces Dror Balshine, Founder & President of Sol Cuisine following the sale of his company to Plant Plus Foods in January of 2022. As a strong advocate for the plant-based food industry, Dror provided guidance and knowledge as PBFC grew exponentially to over 60 members during his tenure and he was instrumental in the development of landmark initiatives for the organization including the strategic plan and Plant Based Food Week.
We thank Dror for his contribution to PBFC’s success and wish him all the best in his future endeavours. We look forward to working with Michael as the next PBFC Advisory Board chair to deliver on PBFC’s mission of advancing a Canadian plant-based foods industry that is competitive on a global scale to meet the evolving needs of our members, stakeholders, and marketplace.