Fermentation, especially precision fermentation, continues to grow as a solution for numerous challenges in and around the food and beverage industry. McKinsey & Co., a management consulting firm, recently completed research on precision fermentation, and Kate Toews and Tom Brennan joined the podcast to discuss the findings of the research, the future innovation fermented ingredients can bring to product development, and how commercialization is happening in food and beverage.

Lauren McNamara, senior vice president of business management for SunOpta, joins the podcast to discuss trends in plant-based foods and better-for-you snacking, and offers her insights into how SunOpta is preparing for future determinations on ultraprocessed foods definitions and potential ingredient bans or restrictions.

McNamara also talks about how better-for-you snacks can position themselves more prominently as solving nutrition challenges for individuals looking to indulge, but do so in a smart way. She also offers an update on where private label products stand with consumers today.

Odwalla juices and smoothies are back, and Carlos Madrazo, U.S. country manager for Grupo Jumex, joins the podcast to talk about the brand’s relaunch and the work done to bring it back after five years off the market.

He also discusses the competitive advantages the company brings due to its vertical integration in the fruit business and how it goes the extra mile to investigate, install and use innovative beverage processing technologies to ensure quality products.

This episode is brought to you by the American Egg Board.

With spring migration of wild birds well under way, egg farmers are working overdrive to keep their flocks safe and healthy as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI or bird flu) continues to threaten poultry and birds of all types.

Not only is the industry researching ways to protect flocks, but it also is battling to restore their numbers. Nate Hedtke, vice president, Innovation and Customer Engagement for the American Egg Board, discusses why he believes the industry will find solutions and bounce back in the near future.

Learn more about the American Egg Board

In mid-February, Food Processing senior editor Andy Hanacek was invited to moderate a panel discussing the U.S. meat industry for cultivated meat company Meatable in the Netherlands. Joining Hanacek on stage were longtime meat industry executive Jeff Swain, Chef Andrew Hunter and Paradai Adisayathepkul of Betagro. This conversation covers how cultivated meat can learn from previous “revolutionary” product introductions to win over traditional processors and consumers.

The quartet spoke and answered audience questions for nearly an hour, and this podcast is a roughly 12-minute snippet of their conversation. Meatable has published a video of the entire panel here, if you’re interested in hearing the rest of the discussion on cultivated meat, Meatable’s plans and how the U.S. market fits.

In this episode, Dana Rodio, director of marketing and branding for Nassau Candy, offers her insights into the up-and-coming consumer group, Generation Alpha. Rodio talks about the consumption and media trends driving the habits of Gen Alpha kids, who have been bombarded with messaging and media from an early age.

She also discusses how Nassau approaches appealing to them, and what any food and beverage company should pay attention to when it comes to drawing them to their brands.

Clint Rivers, president and CEO of Wayne-Sanderson Farms, has had a long, esteemed career in the poultry industry, and he is retiring March 31, 2025, after leading several chicken companies over the last few decades.

Rivers sat down with me during the International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) in Atlanta in January to talk about the challenges and opportunities in front of the chicken industry and how technology continues to push the envelope in processing applications.

He also reflects on his career, talks about the good mentors who have guided him, and offers his advice for those just starting out in the industry.

At the IPPE Show in Atlanta at the end of January, we caught up with Nicole Johnson-Hoffman, who recently took over as chief operating officer for the Meat Institute for longtime executive Mark Dopp, who is retiring.

Johnson-Hoffman shares with us her goals in the role and what she’s already working on just about a month into the job. She also discusses how the Institute plans to work with the new presidential administration to help the industry move forward and gives her thoughts on how the industry still can improve its efforts to keep food safety at the forefront at all times.

In this episode, recorded during the IPPE show in Atlanta in January, Juan DeVillena, senior vice president of quality assurance and food safety at Wayne-Sanderson Farms, walks through Wayne-Sanderson’s digitalization journey and how the company is working to implement artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning today.

DeVillena also discusses how the chicken processor rolled out its training and helped its employees work through the process. He also hints at how AI and machine learning could help the company’s food safety and quality efforts down the road.

Amanda Buonopane, senior manager of strategic insights for Rich Products, returns to talk about Rich’s MegaTrends reports, which the company develops and then shares with the industry.

In the current report, Buonopane says the data shows snacking is on the rise with consumers, and also how e-commerce and online shopping are impacting the food and beverage industry today.

This is the latest guest appearance by Buonopane. Check out the insights she shared in her last episode.