The Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University, Middlesex County, and the New Jersey Economic Development Authority host the inaugural NJ FoodTech 2023 Conference, which will focus on the latest gastronomic advancements and scientific applications of the food technology industry, on Wednesday, June 28, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Rutgers University College Avenue Student Center, 126 College Avenue, in New Brunswick.
Featuring voices from across the field, such as entrepreneurs, academics, investors, and leaders from both major companies and start-ups, the event is the first of an annual series where these experts with shared interests can explore prospects and partnerships.
FIC Rutgers is a food business incubator and accelerator under the Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, or NJAES, with locations in New Brunswick, Bridgeton, and Piscataway. Professionals and researchers with years of experience in their trades help guide both “established early-stage entrepreneurs and existing food companies from concept to commercialization,” as the FIC Rutgers website states, to support these endeavors through expansion and technological engineering.
For access to the conference’s lineup of speakers, moderated panel discussions, and networking opportunities, registration is required online for $30 per person and closes at midnight on Monday, June 26. Rutgers faculty, staff, students, and conference partners can attend for free, but all affiliates must still sign up at the Office of Continuing Professional Education page for the NJ FoodTech Conference, which can be accessed through the Rutgers FIC website, foodinnovation.rutgers.edu.
To park on campus and avoid citations, visitors must register their vehicles online prior to the conference, while Rutgers affiliates must only park in the lots designated by their preexisting permits. For questions or more information, email FIC@NJAES.rutgers.edu.
The day begins with registration, a continental breakfast, and networking before Craig Peck, the senior manager of business development at Rutgers FIC, and Sho Islam, the head of the Life Sciences & Food Innovation Division at Middlesex County, start the NJ FoodTech 2023 Conference off with a brief opening and remarks from NJEDA CEO Tim Sullivan. Then, Kathleen Coviello, the NJEDA’s chief economic transformation officer, and Sandy Castor, the director of the office of business engagement for Middlesex County, wrap up the introductions before the keynote speaker takes the stage.
Lou Cooperhouse is the founder, president, and CEO of BlueNalu and will present “Food for Thought: Food Industry Trends” from 9:55 to 10:45 a.m. with a preface by Margaret Brennan, the executive director of resource and economic development for Rutgers NJAES.
BlueNalu is a San Diego-based company that develops seafood from fish cells to create sustainable and health-conscious products free of environmental toxins. By capturing similar tastes and textures of species often “overfished, imported, or difficult to farm-raise,” the brand allows people to savor the richly flavored (and priced) cut of bluefin tuna known as toro.
BlueNalu plans to develop a whole menu of alternative seafood for distribution, but Cooperhouse is no stranger to leading change; prior to treading these new waters, he co-founded and served as the executive director of the Rutgers FIC program for about 15 years, according to his biography on the BlueNalu website, bluenalu.com.
The next speaker, Marc Oshima, is the co-founder and CMO of AeroFarms, a pioneer of indoor vertical farming that utilizes artificial intelligence and plant biology to grow fresh produce, as the AeroFarms website explains, using as little water as possible and no pesticides in the process. Oshima will discuss how AeroFarms’ agricultural innovations, which aim to combat issues like water scarcity and the increase of food production to accommodate future population growth, apply to New Jersey from 10:45 to 11:30 a.m.
The last featured speaker is Jonathan Kozy, a managing director and senior macro strategy analyst for Bank of America whose work specializes in the research and analysis of global economic trends, making his “State of the Markets” presentation from 11:30 a.m. to noon a fitting conclusion to the first half of the NJ FoodTech 2023 Conference.
Panel discussions follow the hour-long networking lunch, starting with one on “NJ’s Market Potentials and Food Manufacturing Survey Results” from 1 to 1:30 p.m. between accounting firm Grassi partners James McIntosh and Joseph Carnevale and moderated by Doyin Ashiru, the NJEDA food and beverage sector lead.
Jonathan Deutsch, a Drexel University professor of food and hospitality management and nutrition sciences, moderates the next conversation and Q&A on sustainability. Deutsch is also the founding director of the Drexel Food Lab, which finds solutions for global food system problems like climate change and resource competition.
The range of figures speaking on sustainability until 2:15 p.m. include: Paul Takhistov, an associate professor in the Department of Food Science at Rutgers University; Desmond Hayes, the founder of Hamilton indoor hydroponics farm GeoGreens; Robert Began, the director of sustainable growth platforms for the Sabert Corporation; Marianna Shakhova, a food safety professional at Solato; and Jessica Gebel, the chef and founder of Fabalish, which sells plant-based, organic food products created from chickpeas and aquafaba — an egg-like substance whipped from the leftover liquid in the canned legumes — used as a vegan alternative for Fabalish’s tzatziki, ranch, and queso dips.
Rutgers FIC Executive Director Nolan Lewin moderates “Funding Through Private Equity: Entrepreneur Perspective,” another panel discussion, until 3 p.m. with perspectives from these speakers: Mukund V. Karwe, a Rutgers professor of food science; Zheng Song, the founder and CEO of Angel Planet Foods, an East Hanover plant-based Asian food company; Audley Wilson, the CEO of RoboBurger, a Jersey City burger vending machine where a robot chef cooks a burger to order; and Juan Salinas, the founder and CEO of P-nuff, a peanut puff snack brand featured on “Shark Tank.”
The final speaking engagement and Q&A for the day parallels the former one, with “Funding Through Private Equity: Investor Perspective” continuing until 3:45 p.m. Tim Rollender, the director of venture programs for NJEDA, serves as moderator, while SOSV Managing General Partner Sean O’Sullivan, Cornucopian Capital General Partner Wesley Wilson, Big Idea Ventures CIO Thomas Mastrobuoni, and Harvard Business School Alumni Angels President Sharjeel Kashmir offer their viewpoints.
Lewin returns for closing comments, and the NJ FoodTech 2023 Conference ends with networking for those in attendance from 3:50 to 4:30 p.m.
