Our Team
We are pioneers embracing innovation as a catalyst for progress in the food industry.
“NECTAR will support brands to unlock new levels of taste and satisfaction to ultimately drive more meaningful market adoption.”
Director, NECTAR
Caroline Cotto
Caroline Cotto is a Director at Food System Innovations where she oversees NECTAR, an initiative accelerating the alternative protein transition through taste. Caroline eats adventure for breakfast. Her commitment to saying “yes” has led her on an unconventional path to transform the global food system, taking her from White House intern for Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative, to Fulbright Fellow in Taiwan, to UN World Food Programme assistant in Cambodia to regenerative farmer in Italy to venture- backed entrepreneur.
Prior to joining FSI, Caroline was the Co-Founder & COO of Renewal Mill, an award-winning startup upcycling the byproducts of food manufacturing into premium ingredients and delicious plant-based consumer products to reduce food waste at scale. She served as a founding board member and the inaugural Board President of the Upcycled Food Association, the first trade association and certification for upcycled brands.
Caroline started her entrepreneurship journey accelerating startups along the food supply chain at the Techstars Farm to Fork program. She also spent time at the global tech company HubSpot, where she founded and ran the company’s first women’s diversity program, Women@HubSpot. She continues to regularly advise and mentor startups across the food, tech, DEI, and circular economy sectors through Techstars, Princeton START Innovators, ICA Fund, and UC Davis Mike and Renee Child Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Caroline grew up in food, working for her family’s ice cream business in the town of Sandwich, MA. She studies at Georgetown University and has been named to both the Forbes 30 Under 30 (Food & Drink) and the 50 Best Restaurants’ 50 NEXT lists.
“Caroline Cotto built the upcycled foods industry from the ground up, and with NECTAR she’s now poised to create immense value for the plant-based foods category.”
Managing Director, Food System Innovations
Max Elder
Max Elder is the Managing Director at Food System Innovations (FSI) where he oversees programmatic initiatives and organizational growth.
Before joining FSI, Max was the Founder & CEO of Nowadays, a venture-backed foodtech startup manufacturing whole cuts of plant-based meat. Max was also a Research Director at the Institute for the Future (IFTF), the world’s leading futures thinking organization, where he co-led IFTF’s Food Futures Lab.
Max has provided advisory services to organizations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The ClimateWorks Foundation, Barilla, Campbell’s, Nestle, The Hershey Company, Google, and more. He’s been invited to speak at IDEO, The Aspen Institute, The Atlantic Council, The Good Food Institute, Feeding America, Walmart, and the Unites States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, among others.
Max has written for, or been quoted in, The New York Times, The Guardian, NPR, The World Economic Forum, Quartz, Forbes, Fast Company, and many others. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals and books; his research is taught at universities around the world; and he speaks globally on topics related to food systems and the future.
“With first-hand experience developing and commercializing innovative products in the plant-based & upcycled foods industries, NECTAR leadership brings deep industry expertise to help drive taste innovation forward.”
Advisor, NECTAR
David Meyer
David Meyer is the Co-Founder & CEO of Food System Innovations (FSI) and Humane America Animal Foundation. He was the interim Executive Director at the Plant Based Foods Association, works closely with the Good Food Institute, and is an advisor to the Plant Based World Conference and Expo, the Material Innovation Initiative, and many other nonprofits and for-profits in the space.
“Data-driven decisions are key to advancing plant-based foods and unlocking their human and climate benefits.”
Advisor, NECTAR
Galina Hale
Galina Hale is a Professor of Economics at UC Santa Cruz. She is also a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Research Fellow at the Center for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), International Finance and Macroeconomics Program Director at Central Bank Research Association (CEBRA), Co-Director at Center for Analytical Finance (CAFIN) at UCSC, Co-Founder at Food System Innovations (FSI), and a trustee of the Food System Research Fund (FSRF).
Additionally, she is Editor-in-Chief of Review of World Economies, Associate Editor of the Journal of International Economics, on the Editorial Board of the IMF Economic Review and the Pacific Economic Review, an officer of CREDO, an Animal Charity Evaluator board member, and a Project Advisor at MATS.
She was an economist with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco for 15 years, and has taught at the HAAS Business School at UC Berkeley and Yale University.