The VentureFuel Visionaries

This episode decodes the real signals shaping the future of food and beverage innovation. Fresh from the Winter FancyFaire* Food Show, Alice Ponti, Senior Vice President of Innovation & Strategy at VentureFuel, shares firsthand insights into what is emerging as scalable, defensible, and strategically relevant for large enterprises. The conversation explores themes gaining traction across founders, retailers, and incumbents — including sense maxing, appetite resets, and flexible eating — and examines why there are more than 400 Japanese words for food textures. From freeze-dried yogurt to functional formats and next-generation ingredient innovation, the discussion highlights how technical differentiation across product design, processes, and formulation is becoming essential to stand out on an increasingly crowded shelf. The episode also addresses evolving consumer expectations, the shifting demands retailers are placing on brands, and where corporate innovators, R&D leaders, and strategics should focus their bets over the next 12 months.For leaders future-proofing portfolios or innovation pipelines, this episode provides a clear, on-the-ground perspective.

In this episode, Joe Rotondo, founder of Smearcase, shares how a post-marathon training run led to the creation of the FroCo category, a bold reimagining of frozen dessert made with cottage cheese, real protein, and clean ingredients. What began as a Brooklyn kitchen experiment has grown into a category-defying brand that's challenging expectations around what ice cream can be. Recorded at the 7th Real California Milk Accelerator in Napa, California, this conversation captures Smearcase at a pivotal moment—fresh off of being named the program’s Grand Prize Winner and unlocking an additional $100,000 of marketing support from the California Milk Advisory Board. Joe opens up about the realities of entrepreneurship, from introducing an unconventional product to scaling with intention and values. He also discusses the role of the California Milk Advisory Board in helping Smearcase elevate product quality, access world-class partners, and build a foundation for long-term, sustainable growth.

Jeff Barry is simplifying complexity inside one of the most operationally demanding supply chains in the country. As Head of Innovation at Dot Foods, the nation’s largest foodservice redistributor, Jeff shares how enterprise innovation moves faster and more accurately when it’s centralized, CEO-aligned, and always tied to real business outcomes. Jeff breaks down innovation as a four-lap relay race—where innovation runs the first laps through insight, experimentation, and guidance, then hands the baton to the business to deliver ROI. We explore why experiments beat pilots, how running 20–30 tests a year accelerates learning without heavy resource deployment, and why truly understanding a problem means living it—on the docks, in the trucks, and with customers. Jeff also explains why innovation can’t be done to or for the business, but only with it, how external perspectives unlock progress inside complex organizations, and why the real challenge isn’t technology—it’s learning faster than your environment is changing.

Rainer Struck is helping Mars see around corners, test the edges and create lasting value through mutuality. In this episode, Rainer shares frameworks and learnings from 6 years of studying and applying innovation at one of the world’s most iconic companies. He breaks down why legacy strengths become barriers, the need for adaptability and how leaders can shift from reducing risk to building evidence. We explore negotiating assumptions across horizons, creating mutuality, pains and gains, the reality of power-law portfolios and why you need to solve it better than what exists today.

Lou Shipley has led multiple startups to breakout growth ($100M+) and major acquisitions to companies like Citrix and Synopsys. He has taught some of the most in-demand sales and GTM courses at HBS and MIT. In this episode, we dig into the core traits behind Unlikely Entrepreneurs — the title of the new book he co-authored — and why unconventional founders so often win through curiosity, ambition, and determination. Lou breaks down “the problem with the problem,” why the sled only moves as fast as the lead dog, and the essential role founders play as keepers of culture. We explore the patterns he’s seen across high-growth companies, the misunderstood craft of sales, and what Fortune 500 innovators can learn from Unlikely Entrepreneurs.

Alastair Dorward, former CEO of Dropps and founding CEO of Method, joins us to explore sustainability, legacy brands, startups, and the future of CPG. He explains why leaders must get comfortable cannibalizing their own products before startups do, and why customer relevance is non‑negotiable. The conversation dives into corporate venture capital, startup partnerships, and how agentic search is leveling the playing field for sustainable, high‑performance brands. Alastair also shares four insurgent plays: uncover unmet needs, elevate the customer experience, find the riches in the niches, and prove there’s “no mission without margin.”

Steven Guo, Program Manager at Carnegie Mellon’s Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship, shares how he’s helping CMU founders scale through the VentureBridge accelerator (alumni have raise over $200M and are valued at over $500M) and a thriving alumni innovation network. With a systems-thinking approach to building startup ecosystems, Steven reveals how community, mentorship, and collaboration fuel lasting impact.

Alumni Ventures is one of the most active venture firms in the world and under Mike’s leadership has reimagined the venture capital model—connecting accredited investors with professionally managed portfolios through the power of alumni communities. With over $1.5 billion in assets under management and more than 1,400 portfolio companies, Mike’s mission to democratize access to venture investing is transforming how innovation gets funded. In this episode, we dive into the future of venture capital, how networks unlock opportunity at scale, and Mike’s hot take on the impact of AI to investment and the world

John has co-founded and scaled 3 startups in consumer goods, from pioneering & creating the fresh soup category at New Covent Garden Soup Company to launching the toddler food category with Little Dish, he has spent over 30 years turning ideas into category-leading brands. Today he mentors entrepreneurs, invests in startups and helps large and small companies work together through Mission Ventures. We talk about the future of FCMG, why we need to buck conventional wisdom and the importance of understanding of deeply understanding your consumers. We also cover innovation vs. renovation, price pressures, the say to do gap, and why premium is the new standard and the value of brand.

When Jim Weber took over Brooks Running, the company was weeks from missing payroll and $30 million in debt. Two decades later, he built a billion-dollar performance brand that outpaced giants like Nike and Adidas. As CEO and author of Running with Purpose, Jim shares how radical focus, scientific innovation, and an unshakable sense of purpose fueled Brooks’ transformation—from near-bankruptcy to Berkshire Hathaway. He breaks down how to bet big on conviction, lead through crisis, and build trust that powers long-term growth.