My Food Job Rocks!

Joe Heitzeberg is the CEO and Co-Founder of Crowd Cow, an e-commerce site that sells premium meat. And when I say premium, I mean meat straight from the farm, or Japan! We all hear about the innovations of alternative meat, plant-based or cell-based meat all over this podcast so I was delighted to interview a new perspective in the way we view protein, the fact that you can not only find out where your steak comes from, but how it was raised, what breed it is, and it’s delivered straight to your door. As long as it reduces the system in how we farm animals now, I’m all for it. Learn about how Joe pivoted the business from actually crowdfunding a cow, to building out a way to sell Wagyu beef to his customers. And most importantly, learn how innovation doesn’t have to be a new method of making meat, but maybe just showcasing old methods using modern technology. Sponsor The Cultured Meat Symposium is taking place in San Francisco on November 14-15th. Join experts from science, food, and tech industries to discuss the future of food. Join speakers from Aleph Farms, Finless Foods, Memphis Meats, Wild Type, IntegriCulture, VOW, the American Meat Science Association and more. Use coupon code MYFOODJOBROCKS20 for 20% off General Admission tickets. Or use this link here I’ll be there with a mobile podcast studio. See you there! Show Notes In a sentence or less: We help consumers know the source of their meat Why online? We can bring a richer experience than in the grocery store Why is the meat better?: The type of meat and what they eat is much higher quality. They’re well-taken care of Why did you start Crowd Cow?: When an Entrepreneur in Residence, one of my friends was bragging about getting a cow. I went to the farm with him and saw just how different it is to get a cow We first started with crowdfunding one cow, it was fun and engaging but in reality, it didn’t work Wagyu/Kobe Beef – called Koroge Washu, genetically, the marbling is different. We had to get it. We called the slaughterhouse in Japanese and asked them to sell us meat. I had to visit them to get their business. Why Does Your Food Job Rock?: I love learning the process and the consumer feedback What do you think about plant-based and cell-based?: Imitation is flattery. However, I agree that the industrialization of meat is an issue that they are trying to solve. We also have a way to fix it. People want an alternative to factory farming What’s the biggest challenge right now?: Reach and brand recognition Favorite resource: Badass: Making Users Awesome Any advice for entrepreneurs?: Keep one foot in front of the other, you’re farther than you think Also, be around people with founder empathy Until you’ve convinced someone to do things for free with no resources or brand, you’re not an entrepreneur Where can we find you for advice?: joe@crowdcow.com What’s your favorite beef right now?: We just launched an Iwate Wagyu beef. Even the less-marbled cuts taste amazing Are you sharing the efficiencies of your model verses factory farming?: Yes How can you get away from the commodity system?: The people who sell commodity meat don’t know or care about how special the beef is, we do   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kat Fernandez, President of the Food Tech Club, interviews me at their UC Davis student meeting. Had a blast recording this live and great to give advice that I hope students find useful. Show Notes Mandy Jain Episode Kat Fernandez What Would You Want to Know as Freshman?: What food science actually is. Food scientists make food and feed the world What would you do if you were back as a freshman in college?: Do less. Instead of doing a dozen things, I would have focused on a few things Product Development Competition: Be aware of what’s trending such as probiotics, plant proteins, upcycled products, sustainable packaging. Ask for help whenever possible, especially ingredient-wise I’m taking a marketing class, how do I be different?: Blue Ocean Strategy Advice: You need a little red in the blue. Make a great product, and target a group with a lot of money. People can brag about the car Boca burger vs Beyond Meat Make a product that’s really good and market it in a very specific way The 10x rule Magic Spoon sells out What would you wish you’d learn in college?: Humility. School inherently teaches you not to fail. You can’t change it, but you can be a part of implementing cool things. After college, you might Why Does Your Food Job Rock?: I love being creative, but you might not be like me. What do you say to the haters?: I have no haters online. But it’s very hard to have everyone like you at work. How do you navigate workplace tribes? Be friends with people diagonally. That's higher-ups in different departments Alton Brown 5:3 ratio flour to water Sourdough Bread Clean Meat If you want to be an entrepreneur, be in companies that you have to know everything Claire Saffitz Oat Milk Yogurt Nugget How much money will you get as a food scientist?: 50-70k starting out. In 5 years, you can make $100k in California   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is with Akshita Iyers, CEO and Founder of Inirv, a smart kitchen tech company whose first product is a kitchen knob that you can control on your phone! Akshita Iyer started this company with her husband when her mother forgot to turn off the stovetop, and burnt down her house. At the time, Akshita and her husband were in the medical industry and dropped everything to build a company that would have more impact. I had a fun time with this live interview as we chat about building a smart kitchen device. From going on Shark Tank to asking amazing people for advice, we dive in on how to accelerate this process and you will be surprised how the process is very similar to a food business. This is one of two interviews I did live at SKS in Seattle last month. It was a super fun event, and I’ll go a little bit into it at the beginning of the episode. Learn the building blocks of building something as complex as a smart kitchen device. About Akshita Akshita is the co-founder and CEO of Inirv, an IoT company using connected devices to bring safety and simplicity to the kitchen. Akshita graduated from Duke University with a neuroscience degree and worked in the Duke Health System before becoming an entrepreneur. After her mom accidentally left the stove on and started a fire, Akshita founded Inirv to bring connectivity to the kitchen in the fastest, most affordable way. Inirv is reimagining the kitchen and transforming the way we cook at home. Sponsor The Cultured Meat Symposium is taking place in San Francisco on November 14-15th. Join experts from science, food, and tech industries to discuss the future of food. Join speakers from Aleph Farms, Finless Foods, Memphis Meats, Wild Type, IntegriCulture, VOW, the American Meat Science Association and more. Use coupon code MYFOODJOBROCKS20 for 20% off General Admission tickets. Or use this link here I’ll be there with a mobile podcast studio. See you there! Show Notes Adam Monologue Smart Kitchen Summit SKS Rakuten Optimism 2019 Cal Fussman's podcast Big Question Tim Ferriss Show Cal Fussman James Altucher Cal Fussman Marie Kondo Daymond John Faux Fried Chicken on Shark Tank Wild Earth on Shark Tank Intrapreneur  The Power Of Broke Paul Shapiro Smart Kitchen Summit I make products that help you cook safely at home At Inirv, we build connective devices to make things simple What’s your background?: I graduated in Duke and focused more on neuroscience. I always wanted to be an entrepreneur but after the accident, we thought this would be great to help a lot of people How did you think of this idea?: How do we control the appliance instead of solving the reaction? The threshold for a kitchen knob is very low and we’ve tested 100s of stoves to make sure we are compatible. We shipped product, 7000 people on the waitlist How can we get on your waitlist?: Just our website Inirv.com Shark Tank -How can you get on the show?: You can audition but we had someone reach out to us to be on the show. It took 9 months of diligence before we went to LA. You can be cut any time. 30000 people pitch, 150 pitch, 50 get on air. The first 30 seconds are scripted, once that’s over, it’s a complete free for all. There’s a 2 hour pitch. What have you found cool about SKS?: Great way to network Chefling What are your thoughts on kitchen devices?: We’re on the cusp of it. The tip of the iceberg Why do you love what you do?: I love building things. I didn’t have access to any resources but the passion helped built it up What are some challenges and solutions?: We were able to talk to the founders of other smart kitchen companies and it helped us a ton. How do you get through the noise?: Make your note personal. Do your research What’s your favorite resources?: How I built this by Guy Raz A book: Predictably Irrational. I actually took his class What is one piece of advice to start a tech company?: Surround yourself with amazing people. My family helped me a lot. We almost ran out money to manufacture it but we did it. Number one reason startups fail because founders get up We interviewed 100+ hardware founders about manufacturing akshita@inirv.com reach out on my website and linkedin What’s next?: Scaling production. Work with other players and appliance manufacturers. We’re exploring a lot of options Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn about how Renee Dunn from Amazi Foods fell in love with Uganda and how she found the company, pretty much by accident. But the real gem in this episode is getting into the thick of importing products from a different country. Renee established and built up a relationship with a person producing products in Uganda, but after some difficulties in communication and product delays switched to manufacturing their own facility. What are the pros and cons of having another company create your product? Especially if it’s in another country? You’ll find out in this episode. Sponsor People have been saying My Food Job Rocks is a great food business podcast. If you’re a food entrepreneur or want to become one, I highly suggest doing your research. Luckily, my friend Rachel Zemser has the perfect resource for you. She has a book called the Food Business Toolkit that will help you understand everything about starting a food business from formulation to regulation. Use the code MYFOODJOBROCKS at the checkout for 10% off not only the book, but it also applies to an hour of consulting. As someone who’s started their own food business, acquiring knowledge is super important. You can find the book here: https://alacarteconnections.com/shop/ Money will come and go, but you’ll always run out of time so it’s very important to get the knowledge necessary to move forward. Show Notes What do you do?: I work directly with farmer’s groups in Uganda to sell their products What are your products?: A jackfruit chew, a plantain chip and papaya strips Our most popular SKU is a salted olive oil plantain chips Gonja Crisps Amazi – means water in Uganda. It was originally a different name it was busy How did you found Amazi?: I studied abroad in Uganda. I first went in middle school. After going through being a yoga school manager, I quit and went to Uganda. I was asked if I had a booth in this Agprenuer event and made a company. Connected with someone who could sell products and went from there However, we are now building our own factory Why did you decide to build your own factory?: The lack of accountability and control and timeliness built up and we’ve decided to create a facility My Food Job Rocks: The business I created is a form of self-reflection Food trends and technology: Jackfruit is trending People are buying things based on what they stand for but the product must be good What is something in the food industry you’d like to know more about?: Technical Background Global Entrepreneur Summit in the Netherlands Social Impact Accelerator SEED SPOT Do you have any books you recommend?: I don’t really read business books but I get things via podcasts. How I Built This Ben and Jerrys Episode Delighted By Hummus – McKenzie Delighted By Food Podcast 5 Minute Journal Conscious Capitalism The Compound Effect The Power Of Habit Amazi Foods   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you think of Mars, you might think of chocolate or pet food but have you ever thought about the important role Mars has on Food Safety? In fact, Mars recently launched a brand new, state of the art global food safety center right in the heart of China. Within this center, Mars employs top scientists to solve the world’s pressing food safety solution innovations including research on mycotoxins, pathogens and traceability Take a look at not only the Global Food Safety Center’s amazing technology, but also their amazing scientist and learn how Guangtao Zhang got into food, by taking the skills he learned in the pharmaceutical industry and applying it to food safety innovation. Sponsor People have been saying My Food Job Rocks is a great food business podcast. If you’re a food entrepreneur or want to become one, I highly suggest doing your research. Luckily, my friend Rachel Zemser has the perfect resource for you. She has a book called the Food Business Toolkit that will help you understand everything about starting a food business from formulation to regulation. Use the code MYFOODJOBROCKS at the checkout for 10% off not only the book, but it also applies to an hour of consulting. As someone who’s started their own food business, acquiring knowledge is super important. You can find the book here: https://alacarteconnections.com/shop/ Money will come and go, but you’ll always run out of time so it’s very important to get the knowledge necessary to move forward. Show Notes Mars’ global food safety center located in China We feel that China is so central to the world, we had to put it in there Mars sells to China: M and M’s, Snickers, Pet food, Dove Chocolate (dominant chocolate) Spicy Snicker’s Bar Mint flavored snicker’s bar What is the Global Food Safety Center?: Located in Bejing, 3000 sq m facility. Ampitheater that can host trainings and conferences. 30 people analytical BSL-2+ Very powerful analytical capabilities We look into three important areas in food safety research Mycotoxins Microbial Risk Management – Salmonella, E.coli Food Integrity – relatively new, knowns and unknowns in food contamination Also: Soft Tracking and Investigation Ultimately our goal is to prevent microbial incident How to reach Mars: marsGFSC.com How did you get int food safety: I started as a chemistry major focusing on inorganic materials. My academic background gave me a huge amount of technical knowledge. Postdoc in Cornell doing pharmaceuticals How do you find drugs?: It’s a very long process. Screening, until you get a hit. Then you do medicinal chemistry by changing the molecule. It can take decades and a lot of money to create a drug. What was your first job at Mars?: I was always in the food safety center. I started out in the analytical lab and now I’m the head of research in food safety Whole Genome Sequencing IAFP conference What is the biggest food safety problem?: Pathogens What is a good piece of advice: If you’re looking for a purposeful, multi disciplined job, this is it. marsgsfc.com or mars.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I met David Benzaquen, CEO and Co-founder of Ocean Hugger Foods, and his company at multiple different events and tried some of their sushi. As someone who’s in the space, I was super impressed. I’m always impressed with David’s network and because he’s so intertwined within the plant-based industry, I wanted to ask him why he decided to go into building businesses and how can we all can get started creating something impactful. Learn step by step how David built Ocean-Hugger Foods. From building his skillset at Plant-based Solutions to meeting the chef who had this crazy idea to turn tomatoes into tuna, to scaling big enough where they produce in the United States, Europe, and Asia. It’s an incredible story and I guarantee you’ll take something valuable out of it. About David David Benzaquen is the Co-Founder and CEO of Ocean Hugger Foods, a company which manufactures plant-based seafood alternatives to address the overfishing crisis. The company has received innovation awards for its flagship Ahimi product from Whole Foods Market and Sysco, and has been heralded in the New York Times, USA Today, CBS Morning News and more. David has also served as an advisor to numerous plant-based food companies, accelerators and investors. Learn more about his company Ocean Hugger Foods at www.oceanhuggerfoods.com Sponsor People have been saying My Food Job Rocks is a great food business podcast. If you’re a food entrepreneur or want to become one, I highly suggest doing your research. Luckily, my friend Rachel Zemser has the perfect resource for you. She has a book called the Food Business Toolkit that will help you understand everything about starting a food business from formulation to regulation. Use the code MYFOODJOBROCKS at the checkout for 10% off not only the book, but it also applies to an hour of consulting. As someone who’s started their own food business, acquiring knowledge is super important. You can find the book here: https://alacarteconnections.com/shop/ Money will come and go, but you’ll always run out of time so it’s very important to get the knowledge necessary to move forward. Show Notes Who are you?: I’m the CEO of a plant-based fish company, Ocean Hugger Food James Corwell - CSO Tsukiji Fish Market – The auction off 4 million pounds of tuna How did you meet James?: I read about him and he launched a Kickstarter campaign I actually reached out to James on LinkedIn. My background was launching and scaling plant-based companies so it was a great skillset We hear each other speak in the conference and went from there Certified Master Chef Ahimi – tomato tuna We sell Ahimi in food services such as restaurant chefs and college and universities Can you describe your history?: I used to be an advocate, but I felt like it wasn’t impactful. I would start measuring marketing campaigns by doing experiments that changed their behavior Bolthouse farm and the baby carrot Paul Shapiro – Advocate to Entrepreneur Why do you think people switch from Advocate to Entrepreneur?: Food is emotional because it affects our emotions (taste, price, etc). Most people don’t have the time to educate, but they can make choices when they buy How have you seen the process of animal advocacy?: I learned that taking it slowly and meet them where they’re at and enter our world slowly. Flexitarian Mintel’s definition: half their meals are vegetarian What are the components to make a plant-based company?: Team, grit, and endurance Naming matter: We tried Tomato Sushi and it didn’t work. But Ahimi – Spirit of Tuna What does CEO mean to you?: Defines the path and direction and mission We produce in North America, Europe, Asia Unami – Unagi Eel Shelf-life: We flash-freeze our product to maintain maximum freshness National Restaurant Association Show My Food Job Rocks: I get to impact the world with delicious food DOT Foods Algae products Duckweed, Water Lentil What is the biggest challenge the food industry needs to face right now?: Inefficiencies in the system. The reason why we’re selling garbage is that we still believe that the consumer wants to have everything we want right now. This is changing Cargill – Head of the protein division is focusing on plant-based Tyson Foods is doing the same How do you compete on the price of meat?: The meat industry puts a lot of band-aids. It’s cheap and scale. For plants, we will get there, and that’s about investing in the growth of the crop and products Annie Ryu Jackfruit company What are the health benefits for Ahimi?: Fish has a lot of mercury and plastic in it. Our biggest fans are pregnant women actually. We haven’t found consumers to care about protein but they are about omegas What would you like to learn more of?: Molecular gastronomy Jeremy Piven Favorite book: Mission in the Bottle (Seth Goldman, Founder of Honest Tea, chairman of Beyond Meat) Do you have any advice for anyone who wants to start their own plant-based company?: Call me. But also go for it. Why does the world care about your product? There are many channels to get the word out there Perfect Day Foods Perfect Day ice Cream Plant-based Solutions - plantbasedsolutions.com Online Masterclass   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Payal Gupta’s journey to becoming a food stylist was a wild one. She quit her standard corporate job, in which both her ex-husband and her family disapproved of, but through years of persistence,e she now owns her own food styling studio and is flourishing Though you'll learn some fun tricks and tips to style food, and how to work with clients, this episode is more than a peek inside being a Food Stylist, it’s much more about the journey of finding your passion and working hard at it. It takes a long time and you run into a lot of obstacles! That’s the most inspiring thing about Payal’s journey. She worked hard, used her resources when she needed to, asked for help when she needed to, and did not give up even when people said it was not a good move. Now she is flourishing with her own practice. So it’s a great story about achieving your dream, the lesson of being patient but persistent to make it happen. About Payal Payal Gupta – With a foundation of Economics Honours from Kolkata University, I tuned into my entrepreneurial spirit in IIM B (MPWE). Further I was intrigued by consumer behavior in the field of food so I pursued it through my stint in qualitative market research. Having gained an insight into the decision-making process of customers over years, I went on to focus on the food itself. To achieve it I started to build upon my childhood passion of cooking artistically and started studying food professionally. Over the years I have had the opportunity to polish my skills in the world of food by educating myself across premier institutes globally and working with esteemed chefs and hotels some of which are mentioned below:- Le Cordon Bleu (LCB), Bangkok Sophia College, Mumbai Institute of Hotel Management(IHM), Mumbai World Pastry Champion Eric Perez, Bangkok Chef Rohit Sangwan and Chef Aniruddha Roy (Taj Lands End) The years of Culinary education was combined with the artistic aspects of Food photography and Floral design by educating myself at:- Institute of Floral Designing (IFD), Mumbai National Institute of Photography (NIP), Mumbai Sponsor We’re excited to be partnering with Smart Kitchen Summit {SKS}, the leading food tech event bringing together leaders across the food and cooking ecosystems. Now in its fifth year, #SKS2019 is *the* conference shaping the future of food, technology, and the kitchen. Well-known leaders within the food tech industry will all be speaking on engaging topics such as food robots, alternative protein, and connected kitchen devices such as smart refrigerators. Trust us, you’ll want to be there. Use code FOODJOB15 to get a 15% discount on tickets and I’ll see you there on October 7-8 at in Seattle. Just go to smartkitchensummit.com to register. For easy access, just click on our link for this episode’s show notes. Show Notes When someone asks what you do for a living, what do you do?: I’m a makeup artist for food. I beautify the food-based off of the client’s parameters Any tips on how to make food look good?: It depends on the product, it takes time to know the components of the product and apply it. How did you learn the craft?: I apprenticed for two and a half years. I didn’t cook but I watched and read. When I branched out on my own, I found the same problems. So I spoke to a ton of different people and helped learn about it. It’s been 7 years since I was independent. The best way to learn is to get yourself into a problem. How did you get into this?: Since I didn’t have a  food degree, I got a stable job but hated it Ratatouille - “Anyone can cook” Chef Jacob (famous Indian chef) How did you find out about being a food stylist?: sabbatical lead me to a movie, a movie led me to search the net, and then I called approximately 40 food stylists Mentors: Mentors who are confident and know when it’s time to leave are the best mentors to follow. Book Mentioned: The Last Lecture by Randy Posh Do companies contact you?: Ad agencies get contacted, then tey find the right fit TedEx Talk: Ordinary Ingredients for an Extraordinary Life What is your dream project?: I actually had the chance to meet the Prime Minister of my country What’s your favorite quote?: Nike Tagline: Just Do It Favorite Book: Eat Pray Love Favorite Kitchen Item: I just need one knife. My knife is from Singapore gifted from my boss Favorite Food: Rasmalai (softball of cottage cheese) How can we contact you?: design@chefpayalgupta.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the plant-based movement in full force, you have burgers and milk, but you also have something that already naturally feels like meat. Jackfruit, young jackfruit in particular, has been an up and coming food that when Annie Ryu first found it in India, saw the potential to save the world. Eight years ago, Annie was in pre-med student at Harvard and during a trip to India to implement a healthcare program, found Jackfruit and its potential as a food that could reduce meat consumption, improve health and most importantly, improve the lives of the farmers who grow it. She saw Jackfruit as a simple solution to solve complex problems So Annie dropped everything to try and commercialize this then-obscure meaty fruit and it has been a wild ride but now more popular than ever, the Jackfruit Company has products all over the United States. There are so many good pieces of advice in this interview. Whether you need inspiration get up your butt and start something meaningful, or maybe you want to understand the complexities of jackfruit, or why there might be too much protein the American diet and why? This episode is a wealth of knowledge and I hope through this interview, it’ll inspire you to take on a big problem. After all, what have you got to lose? About Annie Annie Ryu is the founder and CEO of The Jackfruit Company, the world’s largest supplier of jackfruit products. While attending Harvard, Annie discovered the jackfruit plant as part of her work in India to implement a maternal and child healthcare program she developed with her brother. In discovering jackfruit, Annie saw an incredible opportunity to convert an underutilized crop to nutritious, delicious food, and income and opportunity for farming families. In 2015, Annie launched The Jackfruit Company, introducing U.S. consumers to this innovative, plant-based meat alternative in ready-to-eat formats. The Jackfruit Company’s products are available today at retailers from coast-to-coast and feature a variety of options, including meal starter pouches, frozen ripe jackfruit and single-serve frozen entrees. In addition to achieving many accolades while attending Harvard, Annie was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 for Social Entrepreneurs in 2017. Awards and Recognition: Forbes 30 Under 30 for Social Entrepreneurs (2017) - Annie Ryu NEXTY Editor’s Choice Award at Expo East (2015) - The Jackfruit Company Harvard’s Women in Business Competition Winner (2012) Harvard’s i3 Innovation Challenge (2012) Resolution Project’s Social Venture Challenge (2012) Additionally, Annie has been recognized as a Global Good Fund Fellow, an Honorary Fellow at the Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT, and one of Glamour’s Top 10 College Women in 2012. Sponsor We’re excited to be partnering with Smart Kitchen Summit {SKS}, the leading food tech event bringing together leaders across the food and cooking ecosystems. Now in its fifth year, #SKS2019 is *the* conference shaping the future of food, technology, and the kitchen. Well-known leaders within the food tech industry will all be speaking on engaging topics such as food robots, alternative protein, and connected kitchen devices such as smart refrigerators. Trust us, you’ll want to be there. Use code FOODJOB15 to get a 15% discount on tickets and I’ll see you there on October 7-8 at in Seattle. Just go to smartkitchensummit.com to register. For easy access, just click on our link for this episode’s show notes. Show Notes When someone asks what you do, what do you say?: We’re an early growth-stage startup When did you start?: I started at 2011 as a college student What is Jackfruit?: The meatiest plant on the planet. It’s uniquely positioned as a whole food meat substitute. Young Jackfruit (not immature jackfruit) Quote: We see the world as we are Why Jackfruit?: When I was working in global health and delivery, I was trying to solve global health and poverty was related. With Jackfruit, I could support the farmers Ripe Jackfruit: A tropical mango pineapple flavor When was the pivotal moment that you changed?: When I saw the potential of Jackfruit it did not matter what, I want it to make it a reality How do you decide tough decisions?: Know yourself and know what you want to do in your life. What is it going to take to be happy and healthy and survive? What was the first thing did you think about when starting this company?: Is it even legal to import jackfruit? How did you get your product into the store?: I had two shots at this. My first time, the farmer added the preservative and it was just above the levels and had to pull of everything. Fruitation to the Jackfruit Company What is the hardest thing about starting and scaling a business?: For a first time founder, You have so much to learn and you have to constantly run up hill. How did you find your resources to succeed fast?: Some of my first connections in the food industry was from winning pitch competitions. The mentor I had was amazing and really cared about what I was doing Lord Of the Rings Endgame My Food Job Rocks: I get to make a positive difference every single day For young jackfruit, this fruit not only reduces meat, but is very sustainable What type of food trends and technologies are exciting you right now?: More talks on biodiversity I also wish medicine and healthcare was more involved in food How much protein is in jackfruit?: A common question, but too much protein is bad for you. We are actually really low in fiber. Will fiber make a comeback? Vegan versus plant-based survey What is one thing in the food industry you’d like to know more about?: How we correlate health and food Do you have any stories about the farmers?: We want more. Right now we are working on scale How do you grow?: We have  a  more food service focus than you think Do you have any advice for starting your own food business?: It’s a balance between strategy and execution No business plan survives first impact Where can we find you?: annie@jackfruitcompany.com; Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a short episode of the future of My Food Job Rocks Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tetrapak is one of the biggest packaging companies in Europe and you might know them for their unique boxed packaging. When you think of boxed chocolate milk or juice, these guys might have made it. But more importantly is that TetraPak is more than just a packaging company, they solve complex ways in how to package and sustain food. You’ll learn about how Jesper Thomsen (Food Technologist)  and Helen Sellar (Product Manager) found out about food science and why they love working at TetraPak. You’ll also learn about the types of problems TetraPak is trying to solve from packaging complex food systems to solving sustainable packaging. Also, this is a great episode about what you can do with a  degree in Food Science! Both Jesper and Helen have food science degrees and utilize it in solving Tetrapack’s food division! Enjoy this episode with Jesper and Helen all the way from Europe! About Jesper Thomsen Food Technologist – Dairy Chilled, Business unit Liquid Foods, Jesper Thomsen works as a food technologist covering various liquid dairy products such as pasteurized, Extended Shelf Life, flavoured, fermented, recombined and lactose free milk products. This includes customer trials run at Tetra Pak product development centres, and for full scale deployment on customer sites. Before joining Tetra Pak in 2016, Jesper was working as a dairy technician in Denmark where he managed development work on UHT RTD products with specialised nutritional content along with other dairy-based drinks and smoothies. Furthermore, he has also worked with other diary-based product such as processed cheese, mozzarella and spray dried cheese powder. Jesper holds an Academy Profession degree in dairy technology from Lillebaelt Academy in Denmark. About Helen Sellar Product Manager Helen Sellar is a Product Manager for Tetra Pak Dairy & Beverage Systems. In her role she is responsible for development projects, such as a recent project to develop the next generation on standardization units. She has over 27 years of processing and technical experience, of which 23 years have been at Tetra Pak based in Sweden. During her 23 years at Tetra Pak she has led project teams to implement leading technology that focus on cutting costs for customers, provide enhanced automation and reduce maintenance requirements. Sponsor We’re excited to be partnering with Smart Kitchen Summit {SKS}, the leading food tech event bringing together leaders across the food and cooking ecosystems. Now in its fifth year, #SKS2019 is *the* conference shaping the future of food, technology, and the kitchen. Well-known leaders within the food tech industry will all be speaking on engaging topics such as food robots, alternative protein, and connected kitchen devices such as smart refrigerators. Trust us, you’ll want to be there. Use code FOODJOB15 to get a 15% discount on tickets and I’ll see you there on October 7-8 at in Seattle. Just go to smartkitchensummit.com to register. For easy access, just click on our link for this episode’s show notes. Show Notes JUST Water Tetrapak Describe how you got to where you are today: We had different paths but we ended up in the same company. Technical to management: Why did you do it?: I just really like working with people What are the hard parts of the job?: You get into territory you can’t look up anywhere. How big is Tetrapack?: 3600 people in Sweden alone Does Tetrapack do just food?: our core business, but we do equipment, and cosmetics My Food Job Rocks: I get to work with food producers all around the world. Helen: I enjoy the short term and long term rewards in the industry What is Tetrapak’s stance on sustainability?: We are putting a lot of resources to make our packages recyclable What type of food trends and technologies are exciting you right now?: Nutritional shakes in a tetrapak environment. Also, chilled products becoming ambient What is the biggest challenge the food industry needs to face?: Sustainability. We need to prepare for that What do Swedes drink in plant-based: First soy, and then Oat. Oat milk has exploded What do you want to more about?: alt-meat trends Favorite kitchen item: Male: Beer brewing system Favorite Quote: Jesper: To do a common thing uncommonly well, bring success – Heinz Helen: Quote: Tetrapak’s quote – Protect what’s good Any advice for anyone who wants to be in the food industry?: Go for it, go for the first job and see where it takes you. Jesper:  your first job is not going to be your last job. Take your learning, it’s not the end goal, but you’ll learn a lot. Where can we find you for advice?: Jesper: If you’re a tetrapak customer, you can find me. Or find me on LinkedIn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices