Food Industry Insider

John Patterson is one of the founders and owners of Pittsburgh Pickle. John and his two brothers accidentally fell into the pickle business. They just wanted to make high-quality food for their bar & restaurant and started making pickles just for themselves. Like many smart business owners, they saw an opening in the market and turned their basement pickle operation into a brand you can find all across the country. John is as honest and authentic as they come and he walks us through all the ups and downs of building this company. If you are in the Pittsburgh Area, be sure to go visit their bar & restaurant the BeerHive in the Strip District. If you want to buy their pickles, check their website for local and online retailers. Follow Pittsburgh Pickle on: Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram ______________________________________________ Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram

Chef Mike Haracz has been a corporate chef for 18 years and has worked for a variety of companies both large and small. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to get a new menu item at McDonalds, Chef Mike walks us through the not so simple process and gives us all the behind the scenes details. Chef Mike has also built a following on social media and most recently was the host of a Dungeons & Dragons themed cooking show on Amazon Prime’s Freevee called Heroes’ Feast. We have a ton of fun swapping stories and we didn’t even get through them all. We will definitely have Chef Mike back on in the future! Follow Chef Mike on: YouTube Instagram X (Twitter) Facebook TikTok Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram

On this episode, we have David "Guilley" Guilfoyle. Guilley is the North America Design Manager for Bakery, Fats, and Oils. Guilley has had a long and unique career. He's worked for many companies in many different roles. He even took several years off. Many would consider him a "job hopper". He's taken what others might see as a negative and turned it into a positive. Maureen and Guilley have a fun conversation full of laughter as they walk down memory lane through Guilley's career. Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram

Renee Evans is our first guest with experience in one of the biggest segments in the food industry, alcoholic beverages. She's worked with many brands both big and small and has helped develop whole new categories of drinks like prepackaged mix drinks and malt beverages. Though we talk a lot about the alcohol industry, she's got tons of experience in many facets of the food industry. She's using all this experience in her most recent venture, consulting. Renee and I had a great time sharing stories and she taught me a lot about alcohol and what happens behind the scenes for some of these iconic brands. Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram

Dave Lazear has nearly 30 years of experience in food distribution, mainly focused on food service. He has a passion both for the food service industry and for sales development. Food Distribution takes the products that food manufacturers produce and gets them into the hands of the people who use those products. Up til now, our guests have been involved in the manufacturing of food with disciplines like food science, R&D, quality assurance, and management. Dave offers a great perspective on what goes on after food products leave the manufacturers and head out into the world. Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram

Dave Calvin is the Senior Director of Quality and Food Safety at Shearer's Foods. When they think about the food they eat, many people worry about whether it will taste how they want or provide the nutrition they are looking for. One thing most people don't worry about is whether or not the food will make them sick. They have people like Dave to thank for that. Dave has built his career on keeping consumers safe and giving them consistent experiences when they eat the food products from the companies he works for. Maureen and Dave have known each other a long time, and it shows with this 2+ hour-long episode. They discuss the many different products Dave has worked on such as soup, pickles, baby food, and much more. This is also our first in-person episode and we hope to do more of these in the future! Follow Food Industry Insider on: ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram

Elliot Haverlack has recently retired after 40 years in the pet food industry. He's held chief executive roles in many well-known companies in the pet food industry. When people of think of the many segments in the food industry, they don't usually think of pet food as being a large player. But with 2/3 of US households owning at least one pet and over $136B in annual revenue in 2022, the pet food industry carries weight in the larger food industry. In this episode, Maureen and Elliot discuss pet food history, pet food safety, and Elliot's main passion, leadership development. If you are interested in Elliot's books or coaching services go to: www.cehaverlack.com Check out Colton Pointz music at: www.coltonpointz.com Check out Flagstone Music Group at: www.flagstonemusic.com/ Follow Food Industry Insider on: Facebook Instagram

Jim Beauregard is the Director of Research & Development for the Mennel Milling Company. He is an expert in all things flour and baking. In this episode, Maureen and Jim discuss many different aspects of baking, flour, food industry (duh), allergies, and more.

On this episode Maureen interviews Barry Traband, an expert food scientist with 25+ years of experience. He has experience in many different areas in the food industry and has worked with many well-known brands.