Lynda Kuhn

Lynda Kuhn is a Senior Vice President, Global Government and Industry Relations & Chair, Maple Leaf Centre for Food Security (“the Centre”).

In this capacity, she leads Maple Leaf’s relationships with government and industry to advance both business and sector interests and the Company’s goal to build a more sustainable, resilient and equitable food system.

The Centre was founded in late 2016 to create social value through addressing the critical issue of food insecurity. As Chair of the Centre, a registered non-profit organization established in 2016, she is responsible for the implementation of the Centre’s mandate to reduce food insecurity in Canada by 50% by 2030, working with the Centre’s board and staff to advance bold change. The Centre focuses its efforts in three areas: advocacy to support public policy reforms that address the causes of food insecurity; funding of innovative projects that advance sustainable food security and have the potential for scale impact; and knowledge transfer to increase collective learning, effectiveness and collaboration. 

Ms. Kuhn joined Maple Leaf Foods in 2002 as Vice President of Investor and Public Relations. In 2013, she assumed responsibility for developing and leading the implementation of a comprehensive strategy to embed sustainability into Maple Leaf’s culture and business practices. She subsequently led a multi-year process to define the company’s purpose, which culminated in a vision to be the most sustainable protein company on earth, embodied by an organizational purpose to Raise the Good in Food. This vision has established Maple Leaf as a global leader in implementing a more sustainable food system. Lynda continues to act in a senior advisory capacity to advance this vision and purpose.

Ms. Kuhn spent her early career leading the formation and execution of development strategies at the regional and community level, including eight years working with First Nations Mi’kmaq communities in Atlantic Canada. In this capacity she worked closely with indigenous leaders to advance bilingual bicultural education, housing, health, and economic development initiatives.

In 2009, Ms. Kuhn co-founded Nyota, a home for orphaned and destitute children in Kenya. She has subsequently worked with local educators to establish the Wezesha Education Foundation, with the vision to empower high achieving young people to become leaders through education. Wezesha provides financial scholarships, mentoring and personal development to 100 impoverished students, enabling them to pursue their secondary and post-secondary education, secure meaningful careers and become role models and leaders in their communities. 

Ms. Kuhn holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (cum laude) from Dalhousie University, Halifax and a Master of Arts degree in Economic Anthropology from McGill University, Montreal.