Food+City Challenge Prize Judges
2018 Judges:
The Judges for the 2018 Food+City Challenge Prize at SXSW will be announced soon.
Previous Food+City Challenge Prize Judges
MASON ARNOLD, VEGGIE NOODLE CO
Mason Arnold has been a sustainability pioneer and serial entrepreneur for more than 15 years. In that time, he’s started and successfully exited several companies and, between him and his companies, has been recognized in 25 different awards for business innovation, environmental stewardship and entrepreneurship at local and national levels. Mason has also created and sat on the board of several nonprofits and drafted legislation to help sustainability causes.
RANDY EVANs, H-E-B DIRECTOR & EXECUTIVE CHEF FOR RESTAURANTS
Chef Randy Evans is an award-winning chef and Texas native with more than 20 years of experience working in fine kitchens in Houston and with boatmen, artisans, farmers and ranchers across the Lone Star State. Formerly of Haven and Brennan’s of Houston, Chef Evans has worked with H-E-B since 2014 on its restaurant projects throughout Texas. At H-E-B, Chef Evans is responsible for the menu and recipe development of its five restaurants in Austin, Houston and San Antonio. He is also author of award-winning cookbook The Kitchen Table (Bright Sky Press, November 2006).
CHRIS BURKE, DELL
Chris Burke is a supply chain enablement program manager for Dell, leading global, cross-functional teams to aid business acquisition and transformation activities. He is assigned as leader of the Global Operations Secure Supply Chain programs. Chris is a lecturer at the McCombs School of Business where he teaches upper-level and MBA courses in operations management and project management. Chris served 27 years in the U.S. Air Force, assigned to various logistics career fields.
LAMAR JOHNSON, SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT CENTER OF EXCELLENCE, MCCOMBS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AT UT AUSTIN
Lamar Johnson is a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin and spent 33+ years at Procter & Gamble in various sales and supply chain roles. Lamar currently works in the space between faculty, students and industry to facilitate research, develop experiential learning programs for students and enable companies to find outstanding talent at The McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin.
EDWIN MARTY, OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY, CITY OF AUSTIN
Edwin Marty is the Food Policy Manager for the City of Austin’s Office of Sustainability. Edwin earned a BA in anthropology from the University of Oregon and completed an “Apprenticeship in Agroecology” from the University of California, Santa Cruz. He was the founder and director of the nonprofit Jones Valley Teaching Farm located in Birmingham, Alabama, and co-authored a book about urban farming called Breaking Through Concrete.
CURT NELSON, AUSTIN FOODSHED INVESTORS
Curt Nelson is an investor focused on local sustainable farms and food companies, real estate and technology. Before co-founding Austin Foodshed Investors, he founded multiple tech companies and exited a couple. He currently serves as a mentor, advisor and supporter for several sustainable food initiatives. Curt has been married for 34 years and has one son.
CARLOS BARROSO, CAMPBELL SOUP COMPANY
Carlos J. Barroso joined Campbell as senior vice president for Global Research & Development and Quality in July 2013. He reports to Denise Morrison, president and CEO, is a member of the Campbell Leadership Team and heads the Global R&D/Quality Leadership Team. Carlos is responsible for leading Campbell’s more than 700 R&D/Quality employees worldwide, focusing on accelerating innovation and new product development to strengthen the company’s core businesses and expand into higher growth spaces, including new consumer segments, categories and geographies.
DON DASTRUP, TRUE FOOD KITCHEN
Don Dastrup began his 20-year restaurant career at Mimi’s Café. After graduating from culinary school in California, he worked in the resort and country club industry at the Montage in Laguna Beach and as executive chef at Aliso Creek Inn Country Club. Since returning to Austin, he’s opened the north location of Roaring Fork and worked to feed 5,000 football fans as executive chef at Club Corp at the University of Texas Club. He’s recently joined the team at True Food Kitchen as executive sous chef.
AJAY MITTAL, DOORDASH
Ajay is the Texas Regional Manager for DoorDash, a Silicon Valley–based logistics technology company that focuses on restaurants and adjacent verticals. Previously, Ajay was a strategy and management consultant with Deloitte Consulting and advised clients on growth and transformation challenges. Ajay graduated from the MBA program at The McCombs School of Business and served as a fund manager with the MBA Investment Fund LLC during his years at McCombs.
SCOTT JENSEN, RHYTHM SUPERFOODS
Scott is the co-founder and CEO of Rhythm Superfoods. He is also the former CEO and president of Stubb’s Bar-B-Q Sauce Co., which he co-founded 20+ years ago with C.B. Stubblefield and two close friends. He also co-founded Stubb’s Austin Restaurant Company, the famous barbeque and live music venue in Austin, Texas.
ANDY SASSER, WHOLE FOODS MARKET
Andy Sasser is an 18-year veteran of the retail and hospitality industry with time split almost evenly between independent restaurants and Whole Foods Market. Currently the global culinary operations coordinator, Andy leads initiatives in program development, global procurement and promotional planning. Andy has been married for 14 years and has a daughter and a son.
SARA BRAND, TRUE WEALTH VENTURES AND (512) BREWING COMPANY
Sara Brand is the founding general partner of True Wealth Ventures, a venture capital fund to scale women-led businesses in the high-growth sustainable consumer and consumer health markets where women are well-represented decision makers. Sara serves on UT Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering’s External Advisory Board and acts as senior advisor for health IoT to UT’s Dell Medical School, where she fosters health technology innovations across industry, academia and community. Sara is also the owner and co-founder of (512) Brewing Company in Austin, Texas. Starting eight years ago with her husband and using organic grains and reusable packaging, they believe (512) Brewery is now the largest draught-only, self-distributing brewery in the country. Sara holds a BS in mechanical engineering from UT Austin and a Ph.D. and M.S. in mechanical engineering in green design and manufacturing, with a minor in public health, and energy and resources, along with a Management of Technology Certification from UC Berkeley as an NSF Fellow.
BILL TOLANY, AMAZON PRIME NOW
Bill Tolany has diverse leadership experience at Amazon, Whole Foods Market and startups. He has built high-performing teams at the intersection of food and technology, and Bill is a frequent guest speaker on innovation, leadership and corporate culture.
SHELLY BRENCKMAN, STARTUP AGGIELAND
Shelly Brenckman is a member of the founding leadership at Startup Aggieland, Texas A&M University’s campus technology accelerator and incubator. Shelly has helped to launch 160 startups since 2012, with 58 clients raising a combined $28.8M. She’s a sought-after entrepreneurship speaker who also manages the Dormcubator, operated by Startup Aggieland and powered by the Center for New Ventures and Entrepreneurship at Mays Business School.
TOM STEVENSON, MEDICAL INNOVATION LABS AND ENCENDRE
Tom Stevenson is the chief strategy officer at Medical Innovation Labs, a medical device and technology company. He is also CEO of Encendre, an agribusiness consulting firm specializing in helping foreign producers, mostly from North Africa and South America, form direct relationships with U.S. brands and retailers. Tom holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and has more than 25 years of marketing, strategy and start-up experience, including positions such as worldwide head of digital marketing for Bacardi and director of strategy at WashingtonPost/Newsweek Interactive.
BOB METCALFE, COCKRELL SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING, UT AUSTIN
Bob has 23+ years of successful experience in science, engineering, high-tech entrepreneurship and venture capital. He is UT Austin Professor of Innovation and Murchison Fellow of Free Enterprise, directing the Innovation Center in the Cockrell School of Engineering. He is also Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering and Professor of Information Management in the McCombs School of Business.
MARTIN BERSON, SNAP KITCHEN
Martin found his way into the food and beverage industry almost 20 years ago and hasn’t looked back. An avid Longhorn fan, Martin attended The University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing. He later recieved his MBA from the University of Houston. Martin paired his education and love of healthy lifestyle choices when he started his current business venture, a fresh and healthy take-away food concept. Combining his food philosophy to sell only great ingredients with his business ethic to provide a transparent approach to clean food, Snap Kitchen was born.
MOLLY S. BRAY, DEPARTMENT OF NUTRITIONAL SCIENCES AT UT AUSTIN
Molly is a nationally recognized expert and a featured speaker on the genetics of obesity, energy balance and exercise response. She is a professor and holds the Susan T. Jastrow Endowed Chair in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin, with a master’s degree in exercise physiology and a Ph.D. in human and molecular genetics. Dr. Bray’s research focuses on the relationship between energy balance and lifestyle factors, such as exercise, nutrition and circadian patterns of behavior.
JOE CANTERBURY, APPCONOMY
Joe is an international business executive with vast experience in global business development, finance, strategy and operations. He has worked with leading global consumer companies, including Starbucks Coffee and Mercedes-Benz. Presently, he worked as the SVP of business development with Appconomy, a China-focused mobile technology startup aimed at Chinese shoppers and retailers. In addition, he is president of a consulting and investing company, which works with numerous startup companies and established or emerging consumer brands focused on international expansion.
MARISSA DUSWALT, STANFORD UNIVERSITY AND STANFORD HEALTH CARE
Marissa Duswalt joins us from Stanford University and Stanford Health Care, where she teaches food innovation and entrepreneurship and serves as administrative director of patient and family education. Marissa is a registered dietitian and was the associate director to Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign. She was awarded a Truman Scholarship in 2009 to recognize her leadership and scholarship regarding childhood obesity. You can learn more about Marissa’s passion for helping people live healthy lives in her talk, The Power of Conscious Eating.
CLAIRE ENGLAND, CENTRAL TEXAS ANGEL NETWORK
Claire is executive director of Central Texas Angel Network, one of the nation’s top angel investing networks. A native Austinite, her background includes 15 years of executive and nonprofit leadership. Previously, Claire served as executive director of RISE, hosting a conference series for entrepreneurs to exchange ideas with investors and business leaders. Under her leadership, RISE became a Forbes “Must-Attend 2013 Conference for Entrepreneurs,” doubling its impact on Austin’s startup ecosystem. In 2013, she was named a finalist for Austin Business Journal’s Profiles in Power – Women of Influence Award.
CALEB HARPER, MIT CITYFARM
Caleb is a research scientist and directs the design and development of the MIT CityFARM. He leads the antidisciplinary group of engineers, architects, urban planners, economists and plant scientists in the exploration and development of high-performance urban agricultural systems. His current work is focused in the areas of building integrated and control environment agriculture, actuated sensing, control automation and data-driven resource and energy optimization.
AIMEE OLSON, LE CORDON BLEU COLLEGE OF CULINARY ARTS
Chef Olson has been with the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Austin for 13 years. She oversees all the programs and students as director of education. She was the executive pastry chef at the four-diamond Hotel Jerome in Aspen, Colorado, during which time the chef was nominated for the James Beard Award. She also worked as a pastry chef for James Beard Award Winner Barbara Lynch at No. 9 Park in Boston. Chef Olson holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Denver, certificates in baking and restaurant management from The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago, and a Pastry Diplome from Le Cordon Bleu Paris.
LYDIA STEINMAN, DEPartment OF NUTRITIONAL SCIENCES AT UT AUSTIN
Lydia is a registered dietitian and distinguished senior lecturer in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin. With nearly two decades of experience as an award-winning instructor in introductory nutrition, life cycle nutrition and introductory food science, she has a broad base of knowledge and expertise in nutritional science and healthy eating.
MATT GASE, EAT WELL EMBRACE LIFE
Matt Gase is CEO of Eat Well Embrace Life, a fast-growing hummus company, that has recently relocated to Austin. Prior to Eat Well Embrace Life, he served as president and CEO at Stubb’s Legendary Bar-B-Q. Before joining Stubb’s, Matt led Commemorative Brands, which included brands such as Balfour, ArtCarved and Keepsake. Prior to Commemorative Brands, Matt’s career was focused on business unit startups and brand-building for CPG companies such as Continental Baking, Ralston Purina and ConAgra Foods. Matt holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Loyola Marymount University.
RUSS CONSER, STANDARD SOIL
Russ is an innovator and entrepreneur with deep and broad experience in emerging energy technology. He is an expert in both the theory and practice of corporate innovation and venturing. Russ recently completed a 30-year career at Shell where he was leader of Shell’s “GameChanger” early-stage innovation program and thus had the privilege of investing in many scientists and entrepreneurs with ideas that could change the game of energy. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for StarRotor Corporation, the Selection Committee for the Energy & Industry vertical of iSelectFund.com, the Advisory Board of the new AccelerateH20 water technology accelerator in Texas, and as an advisor and mentor to a number of startups. Russ is now co-founder and CEO of Standard Soil, a ‘regenerative’ agriculture startup on a mission to produce healthy food in a way that creates positive impact for both people and planet. Russ was born in Omaha, Nebraska, and graduated with a BS in mechanical engineering from Iowa State University in 1983.
JOHN DOGGETT, DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT, RED MCCOMBS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
John Doggett teaches and lectures on international entrepreneurship, global competition, and sustainability and energy. Since 1999 Doggett has spent part of each year teaching courses on entrepreneurship and global competition in Austria, China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. Since 2003 he has led MBA students on annual two-week observation tours of the People’s Republic of China. In 2010 he led MBA students to both China and India. Doggett received his BA from Claremont Men’s College, his JD from Yale Law School and his MBA from Harvard Business School.