FARM JOURNAL - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer for Share
Angela Nardone is the Chief Operating Officer for Share-ify and oversees product management for all Share-ify solutions and brings over 20 years of experience in strategy, business development, market development and innovation. In 2008, Angela purchased the company that later became Share-ify. When arriving, the company had a focus solely in the produce industry. Now - 15 years later - Share-ify is in 59 countries and has customers in the retail, foodservice, distribution, food processing, manufacturing, and packaging industries. Since 2008, Angela was named ‘Top 20 Women in the Industry' by The Packer and "Top 40 Under 40' by Produce Business Magazine and many other industry awards for company performance. Under her leadership, the company was also the winner for IBM's prestigious Beacon Award for Midmarket technology company. Angela has served on numerous industry boards and committees including the Board of the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) and the Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) Council. She currently serves on the Audit and Finance committees for the Conference for Food Protection as well as the chairperson of the IFPA PTI FSMA 204 Working Group.
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Food at Curious Plot
Cristie Mather is Vice President of Food at Curious Plot, a marketing and communications agency dedicated to the agriculture, food, and companion animal care markets with offices in Minneapolis, Portland, and Indianapolis.
With more than fifteen years of experience in fruit and vegetable marketing, Cristie leads effective campaigns that help people crave and eat delicious and healthy produce grown by hardworking farmers. Developing uniquely innovative strategies and tactics is her forte, as she helps Curious Plot's clients stand in the spotlight to reach target audiences in unexpected ways.
Heavily involved in the produce industry, Cristie has been recognized with multiple awards for her work in fruit and vegetable marketing, is an alum of the United Fresh Produce Industry Leadership Program and sits on the United Fresh Marketing and Merchandising Council.
Jennifer Petersen is the Executive Vice President/Chief Science Officer at Sun World International and has been delivering innovation to the produce industry for over 25 years. In her early career, Jennifer was a small-scale producer of certified organic fruit, vegetables, and seed in the coast range of Oregon and later led R&D projects and teams at the University of California -Davis, Monsanto, and Bayer. She currently leads the Sun World R&D program whose focus is to deliver healthy, flavorful, and sustainable solutions for the evolving needs of growers and consumers around the globe.
Jennifer obtained her Bachelor of Science in Horticulture at Oregon State University and her Ph.D. in Plant Biology at U.C. Davis. She was a Fulbright Scholar in Mexico and has conducted agricultural research in more than 20 countries around the world.
Kristina Lorusso is Vice President Retail Partner Services for the Giumarra Companies and a 15-year veteran of the industry. She began her produce career in the grocery retail sector, working for Roundy's Supermarkets based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. At Roundy's, she started as a category analyst and then advanced to buyer, overseeing a variety of categories including citrus, melons, salads, dips, and dressings. Working with the retail team and grower-shipper partners to drive consumer excitement for the produce department cemented her love of fresh. She transitioned to the supply side in 2015 and works with the marketing and business development team at Giumarra. In her current role, she develops customized product and service solutions for key accounts nationally, with the aim of maximizing supply chain efficiencies and increasing sales for retail partners. Her recent project highlights include autonomous flight and trucking tests.
Job Titles:
- Director, Community Engagement
Liz Sertl is Sr. Director, Community Engagement, at GS1 US, the not-for-profit information standards organization, and has more than 20 years of experience in the CPG industry. Working closely with supply chain partners in the retail grocery and foodservice industries, Liz facilitates collaboration best practices and guidelines that help companies improve product traceability and supply chain visibility through the adoption of GS1 Standards.
Sara Neagu-Reed is the Director of Production and Environmental Policy at IFPA where she oversees policy issues related to organic, CEA, crop protection, Farm Bill and biotech. Most recently she served as Director of Advocacy and Government Affairs at AmericanHort. In this capacity, she handled a policy portfolio that included employment policy, pest and diseases, CEA and floriculture-specific issues, and Appropriations requests. Prior to AmericanHort, she worked as Associate Director of Federal Policy for the California Farm Bureau Federation, where she advocated for the interests of California farmers and ranchers before Congress, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the media on legislative and regulatory affairs. Sara also served in the Obama Administration as a Senior Legislative Analyst at USDA, leading organic and biotech programs. Her career began as a District Representative for The U.S. House of Representatives, where she served as the principal liaison between the Congressional office and local businesses, organizations, and constituents, managing local policy issues pertaining to the CA-15 district. A California native and first-generation Romanian American, Sara grew up in Oakland and graduated from the University of San Francisco with a degree in Politics. More recently, she received her master's in public administration and service from Texas A&M University. Sara is also a graduate of the California Agricultural Leadership Program and WeLead, American University's program for professional women seeking leadership skills to serve in policy roles. Sara lives in Washington, DC, with her husband and Great Dane, Nova.