Khoja scientist Dr. Siddika Mithani has been chosen to head the agency responsible for safeguarding Canada’s food supply.
Dr. Mithani was appointed as President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
The agency is dedicated to safeguarding food, animals and plants which enhance the health and well-being of Canada’s people, environment and economy.
Queen’s Medal
Born and educated in the UK, Dr. Mithani has impressive academic credentials allied to 20 years of service to the Canadian state as an advisor and assistant deputy minister.
Her most recent role was as President of the Public Health Agency of Canada, and she has received the Queen’s Medal for her work in developing and implementing regulations for clinical drug trials in Canada.
Ministerial expertise
Dr. Mithani holds a bachelor’s of pharmacy degree and doctorate in psychopharmacology (the study of the effects of drugs on moods and behaviours) from Aston University in the UK. After moving to Canada, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia’s Neuroscience Department. Aston awarded her an Honorary Doctorate of Science in 2018.
She joined the Canadian civil service in 1997, working as a scientific evaluator with Health Canada. She went on to become a director general in the department’s Veterinary Drugs Directorate before being promoted to associate assistant deputy minister (ADM) of the health products and food branch.
Later roles have included as an ADM with Fisheries and Oceans, with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, and as an associate deputy minister at Environment Canada.