Inspire the next generation of food professionals
My Food Job Rocks is the first podcast of it’s kind. We interview food professionals, both fresh and experienced so that they can tell the world why working in the food industry is awesome and why their Food Job Rocks!
Want to find an episode? This page is a directory of all of the episodes we produce.
You can either listen to them here
Or we are currently available on Itunes and Stitcher.
Podfanatic has an amazing breakdown as well
We have also sorted all of our episodes by profession. See below
Career Advice
Early podcasts on career advice, and capturing the general passion of the food industry.
Should You Go to Graduate School?
An Overview on Ideation to Commercialization
On Impostor Syndrome and Over Working
Episode 200 Celebration Collection Part 1
Episode 200 Celebration Collection Part 2
For the Love of Food – A Collaboration with WeWork Food Labs
Pandemic Insights
Recent podcasts from new and returning guests about what’s going on and how to navigate it.
(note: these episodes might have outdated information)
Don Schaffner and Ben Chapman – Professors in Food Safety and Podcasters of Food Safety Talk
Cesare Varallo – founder of Food Law Latest, Lawyer in Italy
Christine Rico – CFO at CFO on Speed Dial
Gary Nowacki – CEO of TraceGains
Mike Mitchell – Co-Founder and CEO of Acari Fish (invasive fish jerky)
Research and Development
A collection of people who create great products using science and culinary skillsets. We ask what type of skill sets are needed and how they got their job.
Product Developers
Taryn Yee – Food Technologist at Safeway
Andrea Zeng – Food Technologist at Lundberg Farms
Adam Yee – Product Developer at Isagenix
Katie Lanfranki – Food Technologist at Southcoast Baking Company
Haley Richardson – Associate Scientist at the Dr. Pepper/Snapple Group
Kimber Lew – R and D Coordinator at La Terra Fina (Quiches)
Stephanie Ronquillio – Food Scientist at Newly Weds Foods (Quiches)
Jessica Gavin – Sr. Research Scientist at Nutrilite
Jocelyn Ngo – R and D Food Scientist at Day Lea Foods (Chinese Food)
Jaime Reeves – R and D Manager at Del Monte Foods (Processed Fruit)
Sherrill Cropper – Bakery Formulation Specialist at Red Star Yeast
Jonathon Weber – Gummy Technologist at Herbaland Naturals
Shyamoli Gramopadhye – Dairy Technologist at DariConcepts – Dairy Tech
Brian Gouldsbury – Sr. Research Scientist at Krave Nutrition – Beef Jerky
Siddharth Bidhe – Food Scientist at JUST Inc. – Plant-based products
Phil Saneski – VP of Product at ReGrained – Upcycled Beer Grain
Ethan Beswick – Research Director at Endless West – Whiskey
Dr. Maya M Warren – Sr. Director of International Research and Development at Coldstone Creamery
Dr. Maya M Warren – Founder of Ice Cream for Change
Dr. Wendy Zheng – Product Development Scientist at Coca-Cola
John Frelka – Food Scientist at Prime Roots (plant-based bacon)
Marie Wright – President of Creation, Design, and Chief Global Flavorist at ADM
Lindsey Wiesner – Founder at WiseBev (Beverages)
Read more about food science here
Research Chefs
Kimberly King Shaub – Innovation Manager at Lundberg Family Farms
Philip Saneski – President of the RCA Student Association
Michael Bunn – Sr. Manager QA and R and D at Sam’s Club
Ali Bouzari – CSO of Pilot R+D and Author of Ingredient
Louis Edmond – Food Technologist at Advanced Pierre Foods
Jessica Goldstein – Marketing Director at Nu Spice
Read more about being a Research Chef here.
Registered Dietitians
Missy Schaaphok – Senior Nutrition Strategist at Taco Bell
R and D Managers
Claudia Sidoti – Head of Recipe Development at Hello Fresh
Natalie Roseler – VP of Innovation at Surlean Foods
Food Safety
Practical jobs and philosophical insights on why our food has to be safe.
Food Safety Auditor
Tiffany Lau – Food Safety Auditor at NSF
Food Safety Manager
Austin Bouck – Quality Manager at Earth2O
Guangtao Zhang – Food Safety Expert at Mars Global Food Safety
Food Safety Advocates
Dr. Darin Detwiler – Assistant Dean at Northwestern University
Dr. Steven Gendel – Vice President, Allergen Control at IEH Laboratories (worked in the FDA)
Dr. Don Schaffner – Distinguished Professor at Rutgers State
Dr. Ben Chapman – Associate Professor at NC State
Quality Assurance/Control
Stories that talk about what gets people excited about quality assurance and the underlying process that makes good quality programs.
Bryan Armentrout – Quality Consultant at the Food Leadership Group
Weber Stibolt – Quality Assurance Specialist at Eight O’ Clock Coffee
Tara Riley – Director of Quality and Savour International (Harvest Internship)
Julie Wilson – Managing Director at FreshCheq (software)
Lilian Cruz-Hand – QA Specialist at Save-a-Lot
Interviews at the SQF Conference Part 1
Interviews at the SQF Conference Part 2
Weber Stibolt – Quality Systems Manager at Beyond Meat
Food Regulatory, Law and Policy
A combination of regulatory and legal questions to make sure you don’t get sued when you develop a product.
Cesare Varallo – VP of Regulatory Affairs at Inscatech and owner of foodlawlatest.com
Mitchell Weinburg – CEO of Inscatech
David Mahoney – Senior Counsel at Indigo Ag, Inc
Joseph Robertson – Global Strategy Director at Citizen’s Climate Lobby
Abe Cohn – Intellectual Property Lawyer at the Cohn Legal Group
Production, Supply Chain and Operations
The workhorses that make and manage your food. Stories that not only advocates the average worker, but also shows just how complex our food system really is.
Trevor Fast – Production Supervisor at Dandelion Chocolate
Sapna Thottathil – Supply Chain Specialist at School Food Focus
Dino Borri – VP of Purchasing at Eataly
Katy Jones – CMO of FoodLogiQ (Supply Chain Software Company)
Darius Chen – Sr. Commercial Operations Analyst at MARS + Wrigley
Marc Simony – VP of TraceGains Network (Supply Chain Software Company)
Zachary Lones – Director: Localized Social Media at WalMart
Renee Dunn – CEO of Amazi Foods (Copacking in Uganda)
Bryan Lew – COO of Fair Trade America
Michelle Klieger – CEO of Strategerm Consulting
Sensory Science
The science and subject of getting paid to taste things. We discuss the tactics to gather good data through companies big and small.
Dr. Howard Moskowitz – CSO of Mind Genomics
Lumeng Jin – Senior Research Executive at MMR Research
Bryson Bolton – Manager of Sensory and Sample Collection at Synergy Flavors
Emily Kimmins – Sensory Manager at KraftHeinz
Ivy Kolliker – Director at Sensory Spectrum
Food Engineering
What even is food engineering? When we actually manufacture a product, what do we actually have to look for? These stories share the technical skillset needed to create the sometimes impossible.
Jeffrey Nguyen – Supply Chain Engineer at Gatorade
Deya Trujillo Suarez – Extrusion Engineer at Beyond Meat
Amit Sinha – Process Innovation Engineer at Watson
Anton Slavkin – Product Development Engineer at Strauss Group
Matt Tom – Systems Engineer and Founder of MTCC
Ana Maria Quiros – Food Engineer at CITA in Costa Rica
Alternative Meat Innovation
Stories that dive into not only the science behind alt-meat such as plant-based and cell-based meat but also the passion behind the people who create them and invest in them.
Zak Weston – Corporate Engagement Specialist at the Good Food Institute
Aylon Steinhart – Business Innovation Specialist at the Good Food Institute
Erin Rees Clayton Ph.D.- Scientific Foundations Liason at the Good Food Institute
Isaac Emery Ph.D. – Senior Environmental Scientist at the Good Food Institute
Marie Gibbons – Clean Meat Scientist at the Good Food Institute
Paul Shapiro – Author of the Book, Clean Meat
Tom Mastrobuoni – CFO of Tyson Ventures
Peter Verstarte – CEO of Mosa Meat (from the Cultured Meat and Future Food podcast)
Annie Ryu – CEO of The Jackfruit Company
David Benzaquean – CEO and Co-Founder of Ocean Hugger Foods
Daniel Scharff – Head of Consumer Insights at Eat JUST Inc
Minh Tsai – CEO of Hodo Foods, a Tofu Company
Ashish Jogi – CEO of FudTekKey, Indian Plant-based consultant firm
Andrew Ive – Founder and General Managing Partner at Big Idea Ventures
Stacie Waters – CEO of Bilinski’s Sausage Company
John Frelka – Food Scientist at Prime Roots (plant-based bacon)
Yuki Hanyu – CEO of Integriculture (Japanese Cell-based)
Max Elder – Research Director for the Institute for the Future
Ryan Bettencourt – CEO of Wild Earth
Arvind Gupta and Po Bronson – Cofounder and Managing Director at IndieBio
Leadership (C-suite, non-founders)
Interviews with C-Suite executives that were chosen to scale a company with high potential. They bring a ton of experience to the table to share with you.
Wil Holsworth – CEO of the SAFE+FAIR Food Company
Roger Berkowitz – CEO of Legal Sea Foods
Robert Jakobi – CEO and Founder of BOU Brands (Boullion)
Evan Holod – CEO of Michel et Augustin
Scott Lerner – CEO of Farmhouse Culture
Lily Miller- CEO of Lily’s Chocolate
Bryan Lew – COO of Fair Trade America
Big Data
A complex field about where the future of food is going and how to take advantage of it.
Todd Barr – Product Owner at Solspec Solutions (Geospatial and Precision Agriculture)
Uwe Hohgrawe – Lead Faculty in Analytics at Northeastern University (Analytics)
Sales and Marketing
How do you get your product or service directly to customers? Two ways: go to them or have them come to you. We discuss the dynamic world of sales and marketing from sales managers to sales executives.
Sales
Kyle Failia – Account Manager at Glanbia (Distributor)
Russ Nishikawa – VP of Business Development at SPI Group (Distributor)
Kim Chackal – Sales Manager at Equifruit
Andy Dratt – Cheif Commercial Officer of Imbibe
David Hart – Business Unit Developer at Salt of the Earth
Stephanie Lind – Founder of Elohi (Food Service)
Marketing
Eric Dunn – Director of Marketing and Innovation at Nutrifusion
Alex Oesterle – Ideation Director at Blue Bear Creative
Jessica Goldstein – Marketing Director at Nu Spice
Hugh Thomas – Founder of Ugly Drinks
Susie Fogelson – Founder and CEO of F&Co (VP of marketing for the Food Network)
Sophie Mendes – Content Marketing Specialist at Restaurants Canada
Chelsey Walker – Social Media Manager at Taste Your Future
Louisa Ziane – Chief Brand Officer at Toast Ale (from the podcast Food Heroes Podcast)
Allison Ball – Marketing Consultant (from the podcast Real Food Brands)
Tara-Ann Dugan – Director of Consumer Marketplace Insights for the National Pork Board
Alexander Zox and Dianna Rogers – Business Developers at BrandFirst Creative Agency
Evan Holod – CEO of Michel Et Augustin (formerly marketing executive at Coca-Cola)
Manuel Gorrin – Brand Engagement Manager at Nature’s Path Foods
Food Trends and Insights
Eric Pierce – VP of Business Insights of New Hope Network
Daniel Scharff – Head of Consumer Insights at Eat JUST Inc
Keren Novack – VP Client Services at Curion insights
Public Relations
Shannon Gomes – Founder/Principal at Good Food PR
Packaging
What goes into a package? Design and plenty of material science. Learn about the complexities of each when it comes to developing a package.
Packaging Design
Derryl Kostynuik – Creative Director at Pencilworks Studios
Fred Hart – Creative Director at Interact On Shelf
Carrie Ardnt – Sr. Research Executive, Strategy and Development at MMR Research
Packaging Engineering
Ziynet Boz – Assistant Professor at the University of Florida (Sustainable Packaging)
Jesper Thompsen and Helen Sellar – Food Scientists at Tetra Pak
Shelving
Chris Robb – Sr. Account Executive at Dirty Hands
Consulting
Whether you have a couple years of experience or decades of experience, there are consultants at all levels. Learn about how these people tackle on challenges with either plenty of resources or none at all. Each one of them has an interesting background that allows them to “cash in their chips” once they reached a good point in their career.
In a firm
Brian Chau – Food Technologist at Helmsman Group
Ken Botts – Food Policy Manager of the Humane Society
Alan Marson – Managing Director of New Food Innovation
Tiffany Tong – Business Development Lead at Canada’s Smartest Kitchen
Elliot Begoun – Principal at The Intertwine Group
Jeremy Smith – CEO of Launchpad Group
On their own
Darryl David – Consultant at Darryl’s Ice Cream Solutions
Michael Kalanty – Author of How to Bake Bread
Susie Wyshak – Author of Good Food Great Business
Dan Follese – Owner at Follese Consulting Company
Rachel Zemser – Independent Food Science Consultant at A La Carte Connections
Kenny Lao – Principal at Culinary Task Force
James Richardson – Founder of Premium Growth Solutions
Authors, Writers, Advocates
Interesting subjects from people who have put their heart into communicating what’s going on in the world. Whether farmer stories, baking bread, or meat without animals, these people push the discussion forward. Learn not only a new subject but howw they got the opportunity to write or talk about it.
Authors
Eve Turow Paul- Author of Generation Yum
Ali Bouzari – Author of Ingredient
Michael Kalanty – Author of How to Bake Bread
Susie Wyshak – Author of Good Food Great Business
Paul Shapiro – Author of Clean Meat
Jessica Gavin – Author of Easy Culinary Science for Better Cooking
Lisa Donovan – Author of An Unscripted Culinary Journey
Harold McGee – Author of On Food and Cooking
Food Media
Julie Miguel – Owner of Daily Tiramisu
Rachel Cheatham – Owner of Foodscape Group
Ronald Arceo – CEO of foodbox.tv
Logan Guleff – Master Chef Junior Champion and Teen Celebrity Chef
Ken Burgin – Community Manager at Silver Chef
Stephanie Burt – Podcaster and Writer at the Southern Fork
Sebastien Dubois-Didcock – Food Photographer
Sophie van Delft – Content Marketing Specialist at Restaurants Canada
Elaine Watson – Editor at Food Navigator USA
Graham Kerr – TV Host of the Galloping Gourmet (from the podcast Peas On Moss)
Matthew Francis Johnson – Chef and Video Producer
Payal Gupta – Food Stylist in India
Austin Welch and Richard Fleming – Owners of Sage Media (Training Videos)
Albert Baez – COO of Blended Sense
Toni Okamoto and Michelle Cehn – Plant-based on a Budget and World of Vegan
Advocacy and Education
Crystal MacKay – CEO of Farm and Food Care (Farmer Education)
Naz Athina Kallel – Founder of Eu Herd (Ugly Food)
Ken Botts – Food Policy Manager of the Humane Society (Plant Protein)
Kim Chackal – Sales Manager at Equifruit (Fair Trade)
David Despain – Director of Science Communication at Isagenix (Legitimate Nutrition News)
Karen Nachay and Jay Gilbert – Employees at the Institute of Food Technologists
Sarah Ramirez – Executive Director at FoodLink (Food Bank)
Ted Johnson – Senior Fellow at The Brennan Center of Justice
Sally Squires – Director, Food, Nutrition and Wellness Communications at Weber Shadwick
Eric Adams – Borough President at Brooklyn, New York
Student Perspectives
Ambitious students that talk about their decision to go to graduate school or work or maybe even both. We dive into the thought process of choosing to go to graduate school and strategies on choosing the right one. I know I’ve had this issue in the past!
In graduate school and work
Jocelyn Ngo – R and D Food Scientist at Day Lea Foods
Undergraduates
Veronica Hislop and Yenci Gomez – Student Ambassadors at Foodgrads
Graduate Students
Amy DeJong – Student at University of Wisconsin
Caroline Campbell – Student at North Carolina State University
Audrey Girard – Student at Texas A and M
John Gleeson – Student at University College Dublin
Deepak Kumar – Student at Oklahoma State
Fiona Salim – Student at University of Wageningen
Eleni Gallata – Student at University of Missouri
Cathrine Boyles and Meghan Marchuk – Students at Cornell University (MPS)
Check out our Graduate Student Series for more info about Graduate School!
Business Owners
A collection of stories at different stages of their business. We talk about the trials and tribulations from formulation to selling at Whole Foods and capture the rewarding feeling that comes with owning your own business
Financial Advice for Small Businesses
Christine Rico – CFO at CFO on Speed Dial
Sari Kimbell – Consultant and Owner at Food Biz Success
Restaurants
Rohini Dey – Owner of Vermillion
Lisa Tse – CEO of Sweet Mandarin
Claudia Sidoti – Head of Recipe Development at Hello Fresh (former restaurant owner)
Mike Mohammed and Randy Wyner, CEO and Founder of Chronic Tacos
Kenny Lao – Owner at Rickshaw Dumplings
Kitchen/Digital Technology
Lin Carson – CEO of Bakerpedia (bakery knowledge hub)
Cheryl Clements – CEO of Pieshell (food crowdfunding)
Julie Wilson – Managing Director at FreshCheq (software)
Akshita Iyers – CEO and Co-founder of Inirv (smart oven knob)
Joe Heitzeberg – CEO and Co-founder of Crowd Cow (eCommerce for meat)
Alison Mountford – Founder of Ends and Stems (Food Waste web app)
Food Businesses
Tom Neuhaus – Owner of Mama Ganache Chocolates (chocolate company)
Sarabeth Yelli Marshall – Owner of Yellibelly Chocolates (chocolate company)
Pina Romolo – CEO of Picco la Cucina (macaron company)
Julie Bernarski – President and Founder of the Healthy Crunch Company (Kale snack company)
Thom King – CEO of Steviva (Ingredient Supplier)
Ana and Drew Stevens – Owners at Pepper North (sauce company)
Hugh Thomas – Founder of Ugly Drinks
Sara Polon – Founder of Soupergirl
Shelby Zitelman – CEO and co-founder at Soom Foods (Tahini Sauce)
Wil Holsworth – CEO of the SAFE+FAIR Food Company
Mary Drennan and Tiffany Vickers Davis – Nourish Foods Company (meal delivery service)
John Mackey – CEO of Whole Foods (from the Buisness for Good Podcast)
Lauren Joyner – Founder of LOCA Foods – Plant-based Cheese Dip
Pete Brennan – Founder of Soñar! Foods – Organic Grain-Free Chips with a Mission
Scott and Jon Demers – Founders of Scott and Jon’s (formally the Cheating Gourmet)
Roger Berkowitz – CEO of Legal Sea Foods
Brenden Schaffer – CEO and Founder of Bright Foods (High-Pressure Processed Bar)
Robert Jakobi – CEO and Founder of BOU Brands (Boullion)
Annie Ryu – CEO of The Jackfruit Company
David Benzaquean – CEO and Co-Founder of Ocean Hugger Foods
Renee Dunn – CEO of Amazi Foods (Ugandan Snacks)
John Sebastiani and Will Rosenzweig – Sonoma Brands and UC Berkeley (past food entrepreneurs)
Ori Zohar – Co-Founder at Burlap and Barrel (spice company)
Mike Mitchell – Co-Founder and CEO of Acari Fish (invasive fish jerky)
Stacie Waters – CEO of Bilinski’s Sausage Company
Jaime Snydel – Founder of Simplified Superfoods
Blake Thomas – Founder of Tiny House Coffee Roasters
Neal Gottlieb – Founder of Three Twins Ice Cream
Nona Lim – Founder at Nona Lim
Investors
Tom Mastrobuoni – CFO of Tyson Ventures
Andrew Ive – General Managing Partner at Big Idea Ventures
Other
Dan Mills – Founder of Tinker Kitchen
David Chan – Owner of Nichijou Ramen (side hustle)
Lauren Abda – Founder of Branch Food
Academia
Spending decades in your subject has a lot of merits and you can share deeper insights on a specific subject. Passion is huge in this area. My job is to break it down so I can understand them.
PhDs in Industry
Bo Wang – Sr. Technologist at Nu – Mega Ingredients
Jaime Reeves – R and D Manager at Del Monte Foods
Sherrill Cropper – Bakery Formulation Specialist at Red Star Yeast
Rachel Cheatham – Owner of Foodscape Group
Ali Bouzari – Author of Ingredient
Howard Moskowitz – CSO of Mind Genomics
Seronei Cheison – Senior Scientist at Mars Petcare
Steven Gendel – Vice President, Allergen Control at IEH Laboratories (worked in the FDA)
Lin Carson – CEO of Bakerpedia
Lin Carson and Dr. Debi Q and A session – Baked in Science Podcast
PhDs in Academia
Dr. Darin Detwiler – Assistant Dean at Northwestern University
Dr. Don Schaffner – Distinguished Professor at Rutgers State
Dr. Ben Chapman – Associate Professor at NC State
Dr. Gabriel Keith Harris – Professor at NC State
Event Planning
What goes into an event? Whether a private dinner, a demo or a huge event, a lot goes into it.
Rachelle Boucher – Culinary Events Manager at Miele
Rachelle Boucher – Private Chef
Penny and Judi Lerner – Owners of AYS Sports Marketing (Taste of Tennis)
Human Resources
Understanding the inner workings of HR has us understand the complexities of culture and the secrets to getting hired.
Steve MacIntyre – Director of People at Vibrant Health Products
Melveen Stephenson – Founder of MS Elemental
Recruitment
We ask recruiters what makes a good candidate in the industry and how to be an exceptionally good candidate.
Nicole Gallace and Juliette Prouse – Founders of Foodgrads
Nicole Gallace – Founder of Foodgrads
Bob Pudlock – Independent Recruiter at Gulf Stream Search
Michael McDonnell – President and Managing Partner at Global Recruiters of Columbia
Alan Reed- Executive Director at Chicagoland Food and Beverage
George McGherin – CEO of the McGherin Group
Interviews with Adam Yee
A bunch of interviews that may or may not be a part of My Food Job Rocks.
Adam’s thoughts on student advice
Adam’s thoughts after 100 episodes
Adam’s thoughts after 150 episodes
Adam gives advice to two people building a food communication platform
Adam gets interviewed by a student live at IFT18
Adam gets interviewed by Kim from Peas on Moss
Adam and Kim just talk about career advice
Adam gets interviewed by Engel Jones, host of 12 minute Convo
Adam gets interviewed by Evo Terra from the Bangkok Podcast
Adam gets interviewed by Ken Burgin from Profitable Hospitality
Adam gets interviewed by Daryl Neal from Beer Talk Now
Adam gets interviewed by Gary Nowacki from the Concept to Consumption Podcast
Adam Gets Interviewed by Kat Fernandez, Food Tech President at UC Davis
Last update: Episode 245