Best Startup
At Best Startup US we track over 1,000,000 US startups and over 3 million people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United States based Founder operating in the Organic space. If you think a Founder is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.us.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Rachel Drori
Founder and CEO of Daily Harvest
Rachel Drori is the founder and CEO of Daily Harvest, a platform is serving the needs of modern consumers by turning freezers into personalized pantries stocked with clean food, quickly prepared and replenished as it is consumed. Daily Harvest was launched as a solution to Rachel’s own daily challenge: squeezing in nourishing fruits and vegetables into her busy life. She has built Daily Harvest into one of the fastest-growing consumer brands in the U.S. Prior to starting Daily Harvest, Rachel harnessed her skills as a customer-centric marketing executive, leading teams at Gilt Groupe, American Express, and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. Rachel holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Columbia Business School. She currently resides in New York City with her family
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About Daily Harvest: Daily Harvest is a customer-first platform that provides subscription-based food delivery services to offer healthy frozen foods.
Brian Bloom
Co-Founder, CFO & COO of Monica+Andy
Brian Bloom is a Co-Founder, CFO & COO at Monica & Andy.
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About Monica+Andy: Monica+Andy is an operator of an online baby clothing shopping platform.
Monica Royer
Founder & CEO of Monica+Andy
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About Chief, Monica+Andy: Monica+Andy is an operator of an online baby clothing shopping platform.
Aimee Yang
Founder, CEO of Better Brand
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About Better Brand: Better Brand is a food tech startup marking a new era of nutrition by driving innovation in the multi-trillion-dollar refined carb industry.
Greg Fleishman
Co-Founder & CEO + Board Member of Foodstirs
Greg Fleishman is the Co-Founder and CEO at Foodstirs.
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About Fata & Fleishman Mentorship, Foodstirs, Modern Alkeme, Purely Righteous Brands LLC, Springdale Ventures: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer of Foodstirs
Sarah Michelle Prinze (née Gellar; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress, producer, and entrepreneur. After being spotted by an agent at the age of four in New York City, she made her acting debut in the made-for-TV movie An Invasion of Privacy (1983). Gellar went on to make several guest appearances in television series, and play small roles in films such as Funny Farm (1988). Her first leading part was in the 1992 miniseries Swans Crossing, for which she was nominated for two Young Artist Awards. Gellar’s television breakthrough came in 1993 when she originated the role of Kendall Hart on the ABC daytime soap opera All My Children, winning the 1995 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series. Gellar received widespread recognition for her portrayal of Buffy Summers on the WB series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), which earned her five Teen Choice Awards, a Saturn Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination. The character was widely popular during the airing of the show and became recognized as one of the 100 greatest female characters in U.S. television. Gellar also gained significant attention for her appearances in the slasher movies I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream 2 (1997), and for her portrayal of Kathryn Merteuil in Cruel Intentions (1999). She appeared as Daphne Blake in Scooby-Doo (2002), her biggest live-action commercial success. In 2004, Gellar starred in the sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and the horror remake The Grudge, both of which grossed more than US$180 million worldwide. She subsequently appeared in smaller scale movies such as The Return (2006) and Southland Tales (2007) and provided her voice for TMNT (2007). Her later film credits include The Air I Breathe (2008), Possession (2009) and Veronika Decides to Die (2009). She headlined the short-lived television series Ringer (2011–2012) and The Crazy Ones (2013–2014), which co-starred Robin Williams. In 2015, she joined the cast of the animated series Star Wars Rebels for season two. In October 2015, Gellar co-founded Foodstirs with entrepreneurs Galit Laibow and Greg Fleishman. Foodstirs is a startup food crafting brand selling via e-commerce and retail easy to make organic baking mixes and kits for families. By the beginning of 2017, Foodstirs products were available in about 400 stores; by the end of the year a surge of interest from retailers increased its distribution to 8,000 stores. In 2018, the brand entered into a deal with Starbucks to carry Foodstirs mug cake mixes across 8,000 of its stores.
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About Foodstirs: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.
David Agus
Co-Founder of SENSEI Holdings
David Agus is an American physician and a New York Times bestselling author. He is a Professor of Medicine and Engineering at the University of Southern California. He is co-founder of Navigenics, a personalized medicine company and Applied Proteomics, as well as a CBS News contributor.
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About Lawrence J. Ellison Institute for Transformative Medicine of USC, SENSEI Holdings, University of Southern California: Guiding you towards greater wellbeing.
Roly Nesi
Founder & CEO of Roar Organic
Roly Nesi is the Founder and CEO of Roar Organic.
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About Roar Organic: Roar Organic is a natural line of vegan, low-calorie, low-sugar, electrolyte-infused beverages
Jared Cannon
Founder & CEO of Simply Good Jars
Jared Cannon developed his concept for Simply Good Jars after an award-winning 18 year career as a chef in the food service industry working for celebrated restaurants and growing fast-casual eateries; all the while realizing how there still is an incredible need for faster, healthier food options. Upon graduation from New York City’s reputable Culinary Institute of America, Jared transitioned to Florida International University in Miami to continue his journey in hospitality management and finished his education at Temple University’s top-rated Fox School of Business with a Masters in Innovation and Entrepreneurship. It was at Fox that Jared’s vision for expanding people’s access to healthy food options evolved. Notably, Jared has spearheaded culinary teams at Tria, Iron Hill Brewery and Restaurant, Ritz Carlton Hotels, FS Food Group, honeygrow, and Di Bruno Bros. He has cooked at New York’s legendary James Beard House and has studied cuisine extensively throughout Italy, Mexico, and across the United States. Jared founded Simply Good Jars in the fall of 2017 with the intent to help improve lives and communities through responsible, respectful food choices for everyone. Jared is starting in Philly—the birthplace of America, and our hometown. But get ready. Simply Good Jars are just too good and too important to stay in one place for too long.
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About Simply Good Jars: Simply Good Jars is to make healthy choices easier and to foster a strong and critical connection between local growers, consumers.
Melissa Lim
Founder of MelissaWithLove.co
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About GoFibre, M Travels, MelissaWithLove.co, Tech Nation, Tech Nation: Global Retailer of Luxury Organic Beauty and Personal Care Products
Barry Brand
Founder and CEO of Brand Farms LLC
Barry Brand is a Dutch-American businessman and entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of Brand Farms LLC and has been part of an esteemed farming family for eight generations. He moved to the United States in the 1980s and launched BH Flowers with his brother, growing snapdragons. He then moved to Carpinteria, California and became one of the first e-commerce flower shippers. From here, he started a company producing romaine lettuce, which eventually expanded to herbs as well. In more recent years, Brand began growing and selling legal marijuana, starting small with nine plants and growing quickly. His CBD and THC (7:1) anti-seizure oil was sold to create medicine for children with seizures and successfully helped to curb the incidence of seizures. He has also been growing GEM avocados and standard avocados through drip irrigation. Most recently, he has been working with his son, Charlie, to protect wild bees by collecting and placing them hives located around the orchard.
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About Brand Farms LLC: Brand Farms specializes in growing high-density, gem-variety avocados and produces year-round fresh herbs.
Nikhil Arora
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Back to the Roots
Nikhil Arora and Alejandro Velez are the co-founders of Back to the Roots (Oakland, CA). Back to the Roots is on a mission to reconnect families to food through its innovative and award winning Ready-to-Grow line (Mushroon Mini Farm, Water Garden, Garden-in-a-Can) and a new Ready-to-Eat line (Organic Stoneground Flakes breakfast cereal, Breakfast Toppers). The products are sold in over 8000 stores nationwide, including Whole Foods, Target, The Home Depot, Costco, Nordstrom, Petco, and Amazon. Nikhil & Alejandro have also been recognized for their leadership in social entrepreneurship and food innovation by Forbes 30 Under 30, INC 30 under 30, BusinessWeek’s Top 25 Social Entrepreneurs, INC 500, CNN’s 10 Next Gen Entrepreneurs to Watch, Martha Stewart’s Top 10 American Made, and President Obama’s Champions of Change. The company was founded by the duo during their last semester of college at UC Berkeley.
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About Back to the Roots: Back to the Roots offers gardening kits to grow organic and gourmet mushrooms at homes.
Alejandro Velez
Co-Founder of Back to the Roots
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About Back to the Roots: Back to the Roots offers gardening kits to grow organic and gourmet mushrooms at homes.
Esther Park
Founder and CEO of Nara Organics
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About Nara Organics: Nara Organics manufactures organic infant formula delivered directly to the consumers.
Lauren Picasso
CEO & Founder of Cure Hydration
Lauren Picasso is the Founder & CEO of Cure Hydration, an all-natural hydration drink mix launching in 2019. Prior to Cure, she was an early employee at Jet.com, an e-commerce company that raised $570M in funding and was acquired by Walmart for $3.3B in 2016. As Director of Marketing at Jet, Lauren worked across a variety of online and offline marketing channels helping to scale the company to over 10 million customers. She was also an early employee of Rent the Runway and has worked for Google, Bloomingdale’s and Ralph Lauren. Lauren has spoken at dozens of major industry conferences including MAU, TAP, eTail West, IRCE, Acceleration & more. Lauren received her MBA from Harvard Business School and B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.
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About Cure Hydration: Cure Hydration offers all-natural, science-backed functional beverages.
Keith Belling
Founder & CEO of Right Rice
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About popchips, Right Rice: RightRice provides a tasty rice grain that’s made from vegetables.
Evelyn Rusli
Co-Founder, President/CMO of Yumi
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About Yumi: Yumi offers a science-based early childhood meal delivery program.
Angela Sutherland
CEO/ Co- Founder of Yumi
Angela Sutherland, Yumi CEO and Co-Founder, was previously a director at Sierra Constellation Partners, a private equity firm and formerly an investment banker at Goldman Sachs. Evelyn Rusli, President and Co-Founder, has spent more than a decade as a journalist, previously on staff at the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times covering startups and innovation.
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About Yumi: Yumi offers a science-based early childhood meal delivery program.
Eric Ethans
Co-Founder of Suja Life
Eric Ethans is the Co-Founder at Suja Juice.
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About Suja Life: Suja is a producer of cold-pressed juices that help people transform their lives through conscious nutrition.
Phaedra Anestassia Randolph
Founder & CEO of Spero Foods
Phaedra Anestassia Randolph founded Spero Foods with the mission to recreate dairy & eggs from plants, making products that are nutritious, scalable, and delicious.
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About Spero Foods: Spero Foods specializes in the fields of big data, food tech, plant-based products, and predictive modeling.
Ted Tieken
Founder and CEO of Keto and Co
Ted is the Founder and CEO of Keto and Co / Sated. Formerly cofounder and CTO of SittingAround.com
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About Keto and Co, SittingAround: Keto and Co makes a growing line of ultra-low carb, ketogenic foods.
Ben Lewis
Co-Founder + CEO of Little Spoon
A serial entrepreneur, Ben Lewis’ experience lies at the intersection of brands, technology and food. He has worked extensively in the organic food industry, honing a well-rounded understanding of consumer facing brands and what it takes to build them. Ben has helped pioneer trends like cold-pressed juice and cold-brew coffee, taking them from obscure, emerging concepts to household buzzwords. Ben’s first foray into business was in high school when he founded a charitable bottled water company out of the back of his car. As a student at Wharton, he co-founded The Epic Seed, a Greek yogurt brand with a national footprint and a cult-like following. Most recently, Ben built a national distribution company which acted as an incubator to up-and-coming food and beverage brands. Over the course of four years, Ben grew the company from zero to $25 million in revenue and a team of 75 people, building a nimble just-in-time supply chain spanning eight regions. Ben’s accomplishments are a direct result of his willingness to innovate and use unorthodox solutions to transform businesses. Through his many experiences, Ben has developed a deep understanding of the obstacles and demands unique to modern consumer products marketed to a younger generation—especially those related to food. Today, Ben is the co-founder and CEO of the direct-to-consumer startup Little Spoon, the first company to offer fresh, nutritionally optimized meal plans suited to the evolving needs of growing babies. Ben is passionate about design, healthy living, food of all types, and creating processes that run smoothly.
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About Kairos, Little Spoon: Little Spoon designs products for a child’s most formative years, starting with a baby’s first bites.
Angela Vranich
Co-Founder + Chief Product Officer of Little Spoon
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About Kairos, Little Spoon: Little Spoon designs products for a child’s most formative years, starting with a baby’s first bites.
Michelle Muller
Co-Founder of Little Spoon
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About Kairos, Little Spoon: Little Spoon designs products for a child’s most formative years, starting with a baby’s first bites.
Josh Tetrick
Co-Founder & CEO of Eat Just
Josh is the CEO & Co-Founder of Eat Just, Inc., a San Francisco-based company on a mission to bring delicious, accessible, healthier and more sustainable food to everyone, everywhere. Prior to founding the company, Tetrick led a United Nations business initiative in Kenya and worked for both former President Clinton and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. As Fulbright Scholar, Tetrick taught schoolchildren in Nigeria and South Africa and is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Michigan Law School. Tetrick has been named one of Fast Company’s “Most Creative People in Business,” Inc.’s “35 Under 35” and Fortune’s “40 Under 40.”
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About 33needs, Eat Just: Eat Just offers a plant-based egg substitute intended to provide healthy and nutritional food alternatives.
Angie Tebbe
CEO & Co-Founder of Rae Wellness
Angie Tebbe is the co-founder and CEO of Rae Wellness. She previously worked as a Senior Director and Chief of Staff, Merchandising at Target.
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About Rae Wellness: Rae Wellness is a wellness startup that offers a variety of vegan, non-GMO, and gluten-free supplements.
Eric Carl
Co-Founder of Rae Wellness
Eric Carl currently works as the Co-Founder for Bloomi and Rae Wellness. He previously worked at Target as the Wellness and Emerging Brands Strategy Leader.
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About Rae Wellness: Rae Wellness is a wellness startup that offers a variety of vegan, non-GMO, and gluten-free supplements.
Brooks J. Kelly
Founder; Director of MycoTechnology
Dr. Kelly began his career as a healer in medical and environmental mycology doing cancer research after earning a PhD studying DNA Repair and the Cell Cycle from Pennsylvania State University’s Dept. of Molecular Biology.
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About MycoTechnology: MycoTechnology utilizes fungi-based food-processing platforms to transform the flavor and value of agricultural products.
James P. Langan
Founder & VP Innovation of MycoTechnology
Jim holds a degree in Chemistry from Hamilton College. Rigorously trained in scientific theory, his knowledge has been critical in the company’s research and development department.
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About MycoTechnology: MycoTechnology utilizes fungi-based food-processing platforms to transform the flavor and value of agricultural products.
Seth Goldman
Co-Founder and CEO Emeritus of Honest Tea
Seth Goldma is the Chief Change Agent at Eat the Change, Co-Founder at PLNT Burger, Chair of the Board at Beyond Meat
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About Bethesda Green, Eat the Change, Honest Tea: Honest Tea seeks to create and promote great-tasting, organic beverages.
Shara Ticku
Co-Founder and CEO of C16 Biosciences
Shara Ticku is the Co-Founder / CEO at C16 Biosciences.
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About C16 Biosciences: C16 Biosciences produces clean, safe alternatives to palm oil.
David Heller
Co-Founder of C16 Biosciences
David Heller is a Co-Founder at C16 Biosciences.
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About C16 Biosciences: C16 Biosciences produces clean, safe alternatives to palm oil.
Harry McNamara
Co-Founder and CSO of C16 Biosciences
Harry McNamara is the Co-Founder and CSO at C16 Biosciences.
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About C16 Biosciences: C16 Biosciences produces clean, safe alternatives to palm oil.
Roni Gloger
CEO & Founder of Altalena Wholesale
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About Altalena Wholesale, OMG! Food Company, Primal Food: Altalena Wholesale is a privately held company that offers organic, non-GMO, kosher, and conventional raw materials.
Sri Artham
Founder & CEO of Hooray Foods
Sri Artham is the Founder and CEO of Hooray Foods.
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About Hooray Foods: Hooray Foods produces plant-based meats offering consumers a vegan alternative to meat products.
Patrick Brown
Co-Founder & CEO of Impossible Foods
Patrick O. Brown is CEO and founder of Impossible Foods, a company at the forefront of making nutritious, delicious meat and dairy products from plants to satisfy meat lovers and address the environmental impact of animal farming. The idea for Impossible Foods came to Pat while he was on sabbatical from his position as an HHMI investigator and professor of biochemistry at the Stanford University School of Medicine. In reflecting on how he could use his training and experience to make the largest positive impact on the world, he realized there was a way to make delicious, affordable meat and dairy products, directly from plants – that would be better for the environment and for consumers. In 2011, Pat chose to devote himself full time to Impossible Foods. After receiving his BA, MD and PhD (in Biochemistry) at the University of Chicago, Pat completed a residency in pediatrics at Chicago’s Children’s Memorial Hospital. As a fellow with Mike Bishop and Harold Varmus, he defined the mechanism by which HIV and other retroviruses incorporate their genes into the genomes of the cells they infect. At Stanford, Pat and colleagues developed DNA microarrays – a new technology that made it possible to monitor the activity of all the genes in a genome – along with the first methods for analyzing, visualizing and interpreting global gene expression programs. He pioneered the use of gene expression patterns to classify cancers and improve prediction of their clinical course. He has also been a leader in making scientific and medical research results freely available to scientists, physicians and the public. With Harold Varmus, then Director of the National Institutes of Health, and Berkeley professor Michael Eisen, he founded the Public Library of Science, a nonprofit scientific publisher that has transformed the publishing industry by making scientific and medical research results freely available to the public. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine and recipient of the American Cancer Society Medal of Honor. He is also the co-founder of Lyrical Foods, Inc., maker of Kite Hill artisanal nut-milk-based cheeses and yogurts.
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About Impossible Foods: Impossible Foods focuses on developing plant-based substitutes for meat, dairy, and fish products.
Monte Casino
Co-Founder & CEO of Impossible Foods
Whether from behind the stove or behind the lectern, Monte has dedicated himself to the creation of fine foods for over two decades. A graduate of Johnson and Wales University, Monte has worked in the kitchens of esteemed chefs like Lydia Shire, Jodi Adams, and Wolfgang Puck. Most recently, he dedicated himself to teaching his passion for blending classical culinary technique with scientific innovation. He worked as an instructor at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts, then at Le Cordon Bleu in Boston where he taught artisan cheese-making, bread baking, and molecular gastronomy.
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About Impossible Foods: Impossible Foods focuses on developing plant-based substitutes for meat, dairy, and fish products.
John Parlet
Owner, Founder of John’s Incredible Pizza Company
John Parlet, began his career in the pizza business with the opening of a simple pizza parlor with a couple of arcade games. With the success of that location, John had an incredible idea: He wanted to create a totally unique experience that combined a made-from-scratch all you can eat buffet with rides, games and attractions! And the kicker.he wanted it all under one roof! So in 1997, John opened the first John’s Incredible Pizza Company in Victorville, California with a 16,000 square foot location. This was soon followed by the opening of nine additional locations that grew bigger and even more incredible! With John’s commitment to serving “good food with a good attitude”, the average John’s is now over 50,000 square feet!
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About John’s Incredible Pizza Company: John’s Incredible Pizza is a chain of restaurants offering pizza and other food items, big screen TVs, themed rooms, games and rides.
Jaidesh Sethi
Founder & Co-President of Dahlicious
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About Dahlicious: Dahlicious is a maker of organic, probiotic-dense India-style lassi and yogurt.
Michelle Mallette
Founder of Fjord Naturals
Michelle Mallette currently works as the business consultant for The Startup Club. She previously worked at Maybank Kim Eng Securities as the managing director of sales and business development.
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About Alouette & Co, Fjord Naturals, Hemp & Honey RX: Fjord Naturals offers gummy vitamin supplements for both adults and children.
Gary Nihart
COO & Co-Founder of Atlas Organics
COO at Atlas Organics.
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About Atlas Organics: Atlas Organics is a operator of a composting facility intended to offer organic food recycling services.
Justin Gold
Founder, CEO of Justin’s
Justin Gold is the founder of Justin’s, a natural foods company that produces organic and all-natural nut butters and peanut butter cups. From humble beginnings at local Farmers’ Markets to launching a national brand, Justin’s is now one of the country’s fastest growing natural foods companies, with Gold serving as an innovator and thought-leader in the space. Gold is a passionate entrepreneur who encourages others to follow their passion and never stop asking questions along the way. He lives in Boulder with his wife and children, finding his work/life balance by enjoying an active lifestyle there as an avid trail runner, mountain biker, skier and backpacker.
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About Justin’s: Justin’s produces the most delicious nut butters, nut butter snacks and organic peanut butter cups.
Justine Kelly
Co Founder, Executive Chef of SunBasket
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About SunBasket: SunBasket is a healthy cooking service that delivers organic ingredients and customized recipes weekly to customers’ doors.
Tyler MacNiven
Co-Founder of SunBasket
He is the Co-Founder of Sun Basket.
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About SunBasket: SunBasket is a healthy cooking service that delivers organic ingredients and customized recipes weekly to customers’ doors.
Tomás Froes
Founder and CEO of kencko
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About kencko: kencko is a food-tech company reinventing organic fruit and vegetable products.
Neka Pasquale
Founder of Urban Remedy
Neka Pasquale L.Ac M.S. is a California state-licensed Acupuncturist, herbalist, author and founder of Urban Remedy a company specializing in certified organic, non-GMO, gluten free, vegan offerings. Urban Remedy embodies the belief that “food is healing.” Every product made blends cutting-edge nutrition with Traditional Chinese Medicine to offer the cleanest juices, teas, foods and snacks with natural functional benefits. Urban Remedy is certified organic, non-GMO and kosher.
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About Urban Remedy: Urban Remedy is a plant-based organic food company that makes eating ultra-fresh and clean easier
Gregory Vetter
Co-Founder of Tessemae’s
Greg Vetter, 31, is the founder and CEO of Tessemae’s All Natural. It was five years ago that he took a Tupperware container filled with greens, his mom’s homemade salad dressing, and limitless optimism into a local Whole Foods and talked his way onto that first shelf. As a former lacrosse All-American Vetter prides himself on his work ethic, determination, and a get-it-done mentality.
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About Tessemae’s: Tessemae’s is a flavor-forward food company that makes clean-label, organic products with uncompromising ingredients of the highest quality.
Amanda Weeks
Co-Founder, CEO of Industrial/Organic
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About Industrial/Organic: Ambrosia offers infrastructure-as-a-service to waste industry.
Ben Huffman
CEO and Co-Founder of Ripe
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About Ripe: Ripe is the everyday meal service providing companies and their people with delicious, freshly-prepared food.
CJ Richards
Co-Founder of Ripe
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About Ripe: Ripe is the everyday meal service providing companies and their people with delicious, freshly-prepared food.
Dan Stauber
Co-Founder + Product Development of Laird Superfood
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About Laird Superfood: Laird Superfood offers coffee creamers and premium organic coffee that is an alternative to traditional sports drinks.
Douglas Riboud
Co-Founder & Co-Chairperson of Harmless Harvest
Douglas Riboud is the Co-Founder and Co-Chairperson Harmless Harvest.
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About Harmless Harvest: Harmless Harvest is a progressive food & beverage initiative set to demonstrate that ecosystem-based businesses.
Eric Haley
Co-Founder & Chief Financial Officer of Gotham Greens
Eric co-founded Gotham Greens in 2009 and oversees all financial operations as CFO. He has over 10 years of experience in finance specializing in M&A, capital raising, and strategic consulting. Prior to Gotham Greens, Eric spent time at Corporate Fuel Partners, a Manhattan-based investment bank and private equity fund and JP Morgan Chase. Eric earned his M.B.A from the University of Notre Dame and a B.S. from the University of Wyoming where he played Division I football. When Eric isn’t seeking the next great restaurant or hunting for the finest ingredients for his own kitchen, he can be found spending time with his family and dog, Beatrice.
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About Gotham Greens: Gotham Greens designs, builds, and operates commercial scale greenhouse facilities for fresh vegetable production.
Viraj Puri
Co-Founder and CEO of Gotham Greens
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About Gotham Greens: Gotham Greens designs, builds, and operates commercial scale greenhouse facilities for fresh vegetable production.
Ashley Rogers
Founder of Spudsy
Ashley Rogers is the Founder of Spudsy.
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About Spudsy: Spudsy is a brand that offers sweet potato puffs are a guilt-free, crunchy, and tasty snack.
Matthew Lebo
Co-Founder of AKUA
Matthew Lebo Co-Founder at AKUA
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About AKUA: Akua specializes in creating plant-based cuisine from ocean-farmed kelp.
Scott Tannen
Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Boll & Branch
Scott Tannen has been recognized as one of the pioneers in the online marketing and branding space. Beginning his career at Nabisco/Kraft Foods after graduating from Vanderbilt University in 1999, Tannen was the driving force behind some of the most decorated interactive campaigns for brands such as Altoids, Oreo and Planters. In 2005, Tannen was hired by Wrigley to build a globally centralized Digital Marketing and Technology team. During this time, Candystand.com became one of the most heavily trafficked branded entertainment sites on the web, with an audience rivaling and eclipsing many independent gaming properties. Additionally, Tannen’s work was recognized by the advertising and creative industry with awards including Gold and Bronze Clios, Effies, Cannes Lions and many others. In 2008, Tannen co-founded Funtank and took the reigns as the Company’s President as it acquired Candystand.com from Wrigley. Funtank reached profitability in a mere 4-months and developed a significant portfolio of intellectual property in the online casual, mobile games and social games space. In December 2010, Funtank was sold to Publishers Clearing House. In 2012, Tannen left Publishers Clearing House following the successful transition of the Funtank team and business. Under Tannen’s leadership, the PCH Play & Win business, which is inclusive of Funtank and PCH entertainment assets, experienced explosive growth and continues to stand as one of PCH’s most profitable business units. Today, Tannen has built an Angel Investment fund at red5 Capital and sits on the boards and advisory boards of several technology and consumer goods Companies.
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About Boll & Branch, red5 Capital: Boll & Branch offers consumers with luxury bedding and goods.
Missy Tannen
Founder & Chief Designer of Boll & Branch
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About Boll & Branch: Boll & Branch offers consumers with luxury bedding and goods.
Betsy Fore
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Tiny Organics
Betsy Fore is Co-CEO & Co-founder of Tiny Organics.
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About Tiny Organics: Tiny Organics is a childhood nutrition company building a healthier generation of eaters with vegetable-first foods for babies and toddlers.
Jeffrey Anderson
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Full Cycle Bioplastics
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About Full Cycle Bioplastics: Full Cycle Bioplastics transforms organic waste into the lowest-cost, lowest-carbon materials on the planet
Dane Anderson
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Full Cycle Bioplastics
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About Full Cycle Bioplastics: Full Cycle Bioplastics transforms organic waste into the lowest-cost, lowest-carbon materials on the planet
Ben Van Leeuwen
Founder/CEO of Van Leeuwen Ice Cream
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About Van Leeuwen Ice Cream: Van Leeuwen Ice Cream is a maker of ice cream made from natural ingredients.
Greg Steltenpohl
CoFounder & CEO of Califia Farms
Greg Steltenpohl is CEO of Califia Farms, a company he co-founded in 2010 with a farmer’s co-operative based in San Joaquin Valley that is focused on creating healthy, delicious plant-based beverages. He has led Califia Farms to remarkable growth, making it the fastest-growing natural beverage company in the U.S. and the leading brand in the natural products coffee drinks category. Greg is well-known as the founder and former CEO of Odwalla Inc., leading U.S. supplier of fresh juice and nourishing beverages. Greg let the company through its transformation from a small start-up to a publicly held corporation with an average growth rate exceeding 50 percent per year. In building the Odwalla brand, Greg was a pioneer in employing ideals of environmental sustainability, employee empowerment, creative corporate culture, and community-based marketing. After Greg’s departure in 2000, Odwalla was sold to Coca-Cola and remains one of the fastest growing brands in the Coke system.
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About Califia Farms: Califia Farms operates as a natural beverage company.
Robbie Rech
CEO and Co-Founder of Hope Foods
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About Hope Foods: Hope Foods specializes in producing organic food products intended to provide organic hummus and dips.
Greg Alterman
Co-Founder & Chairman of Juice Served Here
A serial entrepreneur, Greg founded his first company, Alternative Apparel, straight out of college, right out of the trunk of his car. Alternative has grown from those humble roots into a 75 million dollar brand with international locations spanning from Toronto to Tokyo, garnering constant press and a cult like celebrity following. His passion for health made his next business a natural next step. Inspired by his inability to sit back and watch the nutrition desert take over our food landscape, he had to do something. With that passion in mind, he and partner, Alex Matthews, co-founded Juice Served Here™.
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About Juice Served Here: Juice Served Here is a beverage company that offers cold-pressed juice.
Brad McNamara
President & Co-Founder of Freight Farms
When Jon and I were brainstorming the idea of Freight Farms back in 2009, there was a moment of realization for me that this project had the potential to change the world. From that point on I’ve dedicated myself to making sure it happens.
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About Freight Farms: Freight Farms offers high-volume crop production units made from upcycled shipping containers to support farming in any climate.
Jonathan Friedman
COO & Co-Founder of Freight Farms
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About Freight Farms: Freight Farms offers high-volume crop production units made from upcycled shipping containers to support farming in any climate.
Daniel Kurzrock
Co-Founder and Chief Grain Officer (CEO) of ReGrained
Dan Kurzrock is the Co-Founder and Chief Grain Officer of ReGrained, a mission-driven ingredient platform that leverages technology and culinary science to transform beer waste into food. Dan is an entrepreneurial systems thinker and loves tackling seemingly intractable problems through creative entrepreneurship and cross-sectoral collaboration. Through ReGrained, he has become a thought-leader about food waste business models, “edible upcycling” and the circular economy for food.
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About ReGrained: ReGrained is a producer of snacks intended to upcycle crunchy puffs from nutritious food.
Adnan Durrani
CEO & Founder of American Halal Company
Adnan Durrani is the CEO & Founder at American Halal Company.
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About American Halal Company: American Halal Company produces and sells organic halal foods. Its products include chickpeas, wraps, frozen entrees, and chicken.
Lily Zhao
Founder of Unreal Food
Lily Zhao is the Founder of Unreal Food.
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About Unreal Food: Unreal Food is a food and beverage company that offers plant-based egg substitute food products.
Daniel Brigman
Founder of NuManna Foundation
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About NuManna Foundation: All natural long term food storage migrating to organic and healthier recipes.
Karl Goldfield
Founder of NuManna Foundation
Founder at NuManna Foundation
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About NuManna Foundation: All natural long term food storage migrating to organic and healthier recipes.
Kathleen Hiraga
Founder & CEO of Organics Rx
Kathleen Hiraga is Founder & CEO @ Pop-Post.
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About Organics Rx: Organics Rx is an organic plant and lawn food brand that develops the only organic dry water soluble plant food fertilizer available.
Abhi Ramesh
Founder & CEO of Misfits Market
Abhi Ramesh is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Misfits Market.
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About Altair Prep, Horizons School of Technology, Misfits Market: Misfits Market provides a subscription box service for organically sourced produce.
Kevin Dixon
President and Founder of Alterra Pure
Kevin Dixon is the founder and president at Alterra Pure.
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About Alterra Pure: Alterra Pure provides modern organic essentials focusing on crisp organic cotton percale bedding.
Justin Kamine
Co-Founder of Upgraid
Justin Kamine is a managing member of Kamine Development Corporation and has been at the forefront of sustainable technologies and investing in environmentally sensitive products. Justin is a member of the CREO – Cleantech Syndicate which comprises of 12 family offices focused on deploying over $1 billion into sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, and energy efficiency technologies. Currently, Justin is on the Board of California Safe Soil, a patented food waste conversion company, the first investor and advisor to LoliWare (as seen on Shark Tank) the world’s first 100% biodegradable and edible material, investor/advisor to ZabCab a unique patented transportation app amongst other ventures such as KDC Solar, a $225 million solar development company, Aerofarms, a leader in LED indoor vertical farms and Emogi. Justin also serves as an advisor and mentor to many startups including the incubator program titled EntreprenYOURs. Justin believes in an open, honest and integrity driven approach to business and is focused on proving the theory that environmentally sustainable investments can provide better yields compared to conventional investments.
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About FoodFutureCo, KDC, Upgraid: Upgraid is a category-creating proactive healthcare company that helps people feel better without the use of synthetic chemicals.
Helene Rutledge
Co-Founder of Upgraid
Helene Rutledge is a Co-Founder at Upgraid.
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About Upgraid: Upgraid is a category-creating proactive healthcare company that helps people feel better without the use of synthetic chemicals.
Wyatt Taubman
CEO & Co-Founder of Vive Organic
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About Vive Organic: Vive Organic is an organic, function focused line dedicated to providing the highest quality wellness shots.
Kyle Withycombe
COO & Co-Founder of Vive Organic
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About Vive Organic: Vive Organic is an organic, function focused line dedicated to providing the highest quality wellness shots.
JR Simich
VP of Sales & Co-Founder of Vive Organic
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About Vive Organic: Vive Organic is an organic, function focused line dedicated to providing the highest quality wellness shots.
Andrew Shearer
Founder & CEO of Farmshelf
CEO and Founder of Farmshelf.
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About Farmshelf: Farmshelf enables anyone to grow food where they live, work, and eat by providing the hardware and expertise.
Derek Halpern
Co-Founder of Truvani
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About Truvani: Truvani is a retail company that sells health supplements that people use on a daily basis.
Jacob Goldstein
Co-Founder of Green Mountain CBD
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About Green Mountain CBD: Green Mountain CBD is a full spectrum CBD oil is extracted from the hemp they grow using organic coconut oil.
Michael Funk
Chairman of the Board & Founder of United Natural Foods
Michael S. Funk has served as Chair of the Board since September 2008 and has been a member of our Board of Directors since February 1996. Mr. Funk served as our President and Chief Executive Officer from October 2005 to September 2008. Mr. Funk also served as Chair of our Board of Director from January 2003 to December 2003, as Vice Chair of our Board Directors from February 1996 until December 2002, as our Chief Executive Officer from December 1999 until December 2002, and as our President from October 1996 until December 1999. Since its inception in July 1976 until April 2001, Mr. Funk served as President of Mountain People’s Warehouse, Inc., one of our wholly-owned subsidiaries. Mr. Funk currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Traditional Medicinals, World Finer Foods, and the Non-GMO Project. He also serves on the Advisory Board of The Organic Center, an industry-focused, non-profit organization.
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About : UNFI is the leading independent national distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods and related products.
Lance McInnes
Co-Founder & CEO of Boomerang Pies
co-Founder & CEO – Boomerang’s Foods, Inc.
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About Boomerang Pies: Boomerang makes hand-held savory pies that are sold in both the fresh and frozen food isle of a local grocery store.
David McInerney
Co-Founder of FreshDirect
David McInerney is a co-founder of FreshDirect, a leading online grocer in the U.S. with customers in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. David has spent his career at FreshDirect in a variety of operational and merchant roles. He’s made it his mission to travel the world, searching and procuring the freshest and the finest ingredients for FreshDirect, and assessing the integrity of the merchants associated with the company. Previously, he was a chef in the restaurant industry, where he worked with the late Bernard Loiseau in Burgundy and David Bouley in New York. A full-fledged foodie, David feels strongly that fresh foods provide a point of differentiation and help set FreshDirect apart in quality, and of course, taste.
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About FreshDirect, FreshDirect: FreshDirect delivers fresh food to residences and offices.
Erin Meagher
Founder & CEO of Beneficent Blends
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About Beneficent Blends, Kelapo: Beneficial Blends produces and distributes extra virgin coconut oil and ghee products.
Mason Arnold
Founder of Cece’s Veggie
Mason Arnold serves as the founder of Cece’s Veggie Co.
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About Cece’s Veggie: Cece’s Veggie offers organic spiralized noodles, riced veggies, and meals that go from pan to table in 8 min or less.
David Moosman
CEO/ Co-Founder of ToMarket
David Moosman is CEO/ Co-Founder at To Market Ltd.
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About ToMarket: ToMarket is an online platform for chefs and purveyors that connects ordering, marketing, and invoicing all in one place.
Ben Brachot
Co-Founder, Managing Director of Dwight Funding
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About Dwight Funding: Working Capital Lending for Growth Stage Consumer and DTC Businesses
Johnny Kien
Founder & CEO of Keen Bean Organics
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About Keen Bean Organics: Keen Bean creates and delivers nourishing, clean, superfood for OUR little ones.
Eric Brent
Founder & Director of HappyCow
The idea of HappyCow started in 1997 when I first learned that the only world guide to vegetarian restaurants and vegan restaurants on the internet at that time (now defunct) was no longer being updated. However, I had put the idea on hold until November 1999. I was living in India at that time, and although I wasn’t sure exactly how a project like this could be managed, I felt compelled to take it on. As a world traveler who’s lived, worked, and visited more than 50 countries, I had encountered much difficulty looking for “safe” food each time I arrived at a new town or city. So, I taught myself html, paid for web hosting, and HappyCow was born. As a 20+ year vegan, having this resource has made eating vegan simple.
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About HappyCow: HappyCow, a global, searchable, vegetarian dining guide and health food store directory featuring vegetarian and vegan restaurants and more.
Michelle Carfagno
CEO & Founder of Sweet Note Bakery
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About Sweet Note Bakery: Sweet Note Bakery is a gluten-free and allergen free bagel manufacturer based in Manayunk.
Sara Cullen
Founder & CEO of GEM
Sara Cullen is the founder and CEO of GEM.
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About GEM: GEM is a consumer life science company that offers edible nutritional supplements.
Carli Blum
Founder & CEO of Sunscoop
From a young age, Carli has lived with a long list of food sensitivities and allergies. Unable to eat nuts, dairy, soy, gluten, or eggs- much of her time and energy was spent looking for delicious things that wouldn’t rebel against her body. Growing up in San Diego, Carli’s mother taught her how to channel her food restrictions into something positive and creative; together, they experimented with unique recipes using the things she could eat, creating delicious, colorful combinations from quality whole ingredients. It wasn’t until moving to NYC in 2013 and struggling with the lack of high quality, allergen friendly options (that actually tasted good), Carli realized there was a real opportunity to create something for herself. That something became Koku, which was simply too delicious to not share with the world. Inspired by mature coconuts and their creamy, neutral taste, they became her canvas to develop a new category of ice cream.
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About Koku NYC, Sunscoop: Sunscoop is a plant-based ice cream startup that offers delicious, allergen-friendly flavors.
Juliana Miller
Founder & CEO of The Nue Co.
Jules Miller is the Founder and CEO of The Nue Co.
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About The Nue Co.: The Nue Co. deliver supplements made from foods.
Manuel C. Lagunas-Solar
Founder & Chief Scientific Officer of RF Biocidics
Dr. Lagunas-Solar’s research has led to several breakthroughs in non-chemical methods of disinfection and pest control of agricultural products. He holds several patents, both in the US and internationally, in the area of utilizing radiofrequency and ultraviolet methods for disinfection and pest control. Dr. Lagunas-Solar’s hold a degree from the Universidad Catolica in Chile, as well as a M.S. in Radiation Chemistry from the University of Puerto Rico and a Ph.D. in Radiochemistry from the University of California, Davis.
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About Allied Minds, RF Biocidics: RF Biocidics manufactures different lines of equipment designed for the elimination of food-related pathogens, pests, and fungi.
Dan Allen
CEO & Founder of Farmscape
Dan, an Iowa native, is proud to practice a much different sort of agriculture than his home state is known for. As Farmscape’s CEO, he oversees a multiple bottom-line approach that seeks to maximize the venture’s social and environmental impact as well as its financial well-being. Dan is a Master Gardener and a member of the LA Food Policy Council’s Working Group on Urban Agriculture. He is also a periodic contributor to The Huffington Post and Seedstock.
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About Farmscape: Farmscape is the largest urban farming venture in the country, managing sites in residential backyards, agrihoods and commercial campuses.
Mark Fachler
Founder & CEO of Veestro
President, Operations at Veestro.
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About Veestro: Veestro is the newest concept in Food Commerce.
Monica Klausner
Co-Founder of Veestro
Co-Founder of Veestro.
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About Veestro: Veestro is the newest concept in Food Commerce.
Marko Dukmenic
Co-Founder of Farmeron
Mr. Marko Dukmenic serves as Chief Technology Officer of Farmeron Inc. Mr. Dukmenic graduated from University of Zagreb’s Faculty of Organization and Informatics in 2010 and holds Master’s degree in IT.
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About Farmeron: A cloud-based dairy herd & farm business management software – allowing producers across the world to become the very best.
