What happens when every menu and grocery aisle starts to look the same? Menu Matters’ Maeve Webster and Mike Kostyo discuss the push for simplicity, the pitfalls of trend chasing, and where real innovation will come from next. Blake Harris, managing director of IFT’s Global Food Traceability Center, talks about how the new Traceability Driver came to life, what makes it different, and why open-source solutions like this could be a game-changer for the global food system.
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GUESTS
Maeve Webster is president of Menu Matters, a food industry consultancy specializing in translating consumer and market trends into actionable business strategies. With more than 20 years of experience, she advises manufacturers, operators, and commodity boards on menu strategy, product development, and innovation priorities. A frequent industry speaker and contributor to major conferences, Maeve is recognized for her ability to identify critical trends that impact how consumers eat, drink, and connect with brands.
Mike Kostyo is vice president at Menu Matters, where he helps clients uncover emerging food and beverage trends through a human-centered, data-informed lens. Known for his cross-disciplinary background in gastronomy, journalism, and culinary arts, he provides insights that connect cultural shifts to innovation opportunities across foodservice, retail, and CPG. Mike is a regular industry speaker and media contributor and cohosts The Mess Hall podcast, which explores the stories and behaviors shaping the future of food.
Blake Harris, CSPC, is managing director of the Institute of Food Technologists’ Global Food Traceability Center (GFTC), where he leads global efforts to advance end-to-end food traceability through open-source innovation, advocating for international standards, and collaborative multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Omnivore Podcast
Join the award-winning editors of Food Technology magazine every other Monday for Omnivore, the podcast that intersects the business of food and the science of food, through lively discussion and interviews with product innovators, leading researchers, policy makers, and thought leaders from across the world of food.
