A policy strategist and association executive, Karen brings over 20 years of senior management in both the public and private sectors in Canada.
Karen is currently the President & CEO of Fertilizer Canada; a role she took on in April of 2021. Fertilizer Canada is an industry association that represents manufacturers, wholesale and retail distributors of nitrogen, phosphate, potash and sulphur fertilizers.
After graduating with a Bachelor of Applied Science from Ryerson University in 1997, Karen began her career with Health Canada as an Environmental Health Officer working on First Nation Reserves in Alberta. Over her almost decade-long career with Health Canada, Karen took on increasingly senior-level management roles including leading the department’s legislative renewal initiative aimed at modernizing Health Canada’s health protection legislation.
In 2006, Karen left the public service to pursue opportunities in the private sector. Her most recent roles, prior to joining Fertilizer Canada, were that of: Chief Operating Officer for Food, Health and Consumer Products Canada, President of Consumer Health Products Canada, and Vice President of Federal Government Affairs for the Retail Council of Canada.
Karen is a current board member of Nutrients for Life, a charitable organization focusing on soil science and agricultural sustainability. She is also a past board member of the Global Self-Care Federation, Labour Watch, as well as the Canadian Partnership for Consumer Food Safety Education.