Neil Strand has over 20 years of  experience in the Canadian regulation and safety assessment of novel foods. Mr. Strand joined the Health Canada’s Food and Nutrition Directorate in 2005 as a scientific evaluator in the Novel Foods Section and has held positions as the assessment team lead for the food-natural health product transition and as an advisor to the Assistant Deputy Minister  of the Health Products and Food Branch at Health Canada. Currently, Mr. Strand is the Section Head of the Novel Foods Section, leading a team of scientific evaluators responsible for the assessment of novel foods.