The Speakers

Dr. John Kelly has assumed the position of Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs for Ontario (OMAFRA) in 2020.

With an extensive career spanning 25 years in Ontario and Canadian agriculture, Dr. Kelly has played key roles in various capacities. His involvement extends to organizations such as the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, MaRS Landing, and Bioenterprise. Additionally, he has held significant positions within various agriculture companies.

Dr. Kelly holds a PhD and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Guelph, along with a Master's degree from the University of Alberta.

As a sought-after strategist, speaker and executive, Dr. Kelly brings leadership, enthusiasm and experience in delivering on corporate and fiscal responsibility and driving commercialization of innovation. 

Mike grew up on a farm near Elora, Ontario and graduated from the University of Guelph  with a BSc in Animal Science and an MSc in Animal Breeding and Genetics. Mike spent thirteen years with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food doing extension work and a variety of management roles. In 1999, he moved to Beef Farmers of Ontario where he was Executive Director for a very busy five-year period that included the Walkerton issue, a complete organizational review and restructuring, and BSE. 

Following that, Mike spent four years with Agricorp as Director of Operations, responsible for delivery of risk management programs to Ontario farmers. In 2008, he joined AgSights as General Manager and led an organizational transformation with a focus on effective data capture and use by livestock producers and others along the food chain. Mike joined LRIC in 2019.

He is a natural optimist as evidenced by the fact that he is a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs.