Eating at a Meeting

Chef Francois Agenbach thrives on designing food solutions that are unique and focused. Loves experimenting with food to create surprises...it looks like something familiar but tastes totally different. Learn how the Executive Chef of the CSIR International Convention Centre in Pretoria, South Africa is designing catering solutions that consider the social, environmental and health impact and allo...

Having celiac disease means you need to be diligent about what you eat ALL THE TIME. Although the disease is manageable and treatable with a completely gluten-free diet, it can be overwhelming with the considerable lifestyle changes it requires when eating at home, at restaurants and at events. Safe food handling, preparation, storage and service is a necessity. In this episode, Margaret Clegg, au...

Would you have ever thought that the food and beverage ordered for your event could impact the environment? When I first became a planner 30 years ago...no way. It never crossed my mind nor was it discussed by my bosses. Earth Day, first celebrated in 1970 to raise awareness about environmental issues, prompted the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that same year. Twenty years l...

Laura Lee Cascada is the Campaigns Director for the Better Food Foundation, where she works to make institutional food menus more inclusive and sustainable through an innovative strategy called DefaultVeg. She has over a decade of experience in environmental and food advocacy and has helped major brands like Starbucks, Subway, and Nestle introduce plant-based options to their menus. She has a mast...

What and how will we be eating in 2021? Comfort food in shipping containers? Functional and healthy? Ethically, sustainably and contactless? Join this conversation with Felicia Trujillo, founder of Food Seen, a creative marketing agency specializing in food and beverage, and Mark Cooper, CEO of the IACC, an international association of world-class venues and the bi-annual Meeting Rooms of the Futu...

What is sustainable seafood? Should you buy farm-raised or wild caught? How do you find responsibly-caught, sustainable fish? Virginia Willis, chef, James Beard Award-winning Cookbook Author and a Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch Blue Ribbon Task Force Member, will share her passion and expertise on what sustainable seafood is, how to find it and how to cook it. Useful Links http://virginiawi...

Eating at a Meeting can be challenging for attendee's with food allergies and other dietary needs. We are relying on someone else to order, prepare and serve us food and beverage. In this episode, which is published on Global Meetings Industry Day, Tracy goes through 6 Ways attendees with dietary needs and meeting professionals can control about the food and beverage being served in an effort to c...

While you may know Jim Spellos for his fabulous practical technology training, did you know he spends his "free" time volunteering for organizations that help fight hunger as well as helping people understand the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle? In this segment, Jim and Tracy will chat about eating at a meeting with a plant-based diet, how it has helped him and how to recover event food to hel...

Kristina Stanley, a member of the Red Cliff Lake Superior Chippewa, celebrates her indigenous heritage by creating, selling and promoting the use of food that features indigenous ingredients and tribally-sourced products to produce healthy meals. In this episode of Eating at a Meeting celebrating Women's History Month, learn how Kristina, through her plant-based company Abaaso Foods, her leadershi...

In this episode of Eating at a Meeting, Tanya Gurrieri, founder of Salthouse Catering in Charleston, SC joins us to talk about how there is no compromising when it comes to food safety or quality no matter where we are executing an event or for whom. Useful Links www.salthousecatering.com https://www.facebook.com/SalthouseCatering https://www.instagram.com/salthousecatering/ https://www.linkedin.c...

When Keitra Bates lost her family-owned pizza shop in a rapidly gentrifying community due to rent hikes and the threat of displacement, she bought a boarded up building in a nearby neighborhood and created Marddy's, a food incubator with a mission to preserve and promote culinary culture. By providing local food entrepreneurs who are people of color, women and other marginalized populations a lice...

After 20 years owning and running her own farm-to-table restaurants in Sonoma County, Duskie Estes is now running Farm to Pantry, taking her dedication to sourcing food ethically and advocating for small farmers to fighting food insecurity by distributing nutrient-rich foods to those in need. This episode is part of thrive! meetings & events celebration of Women's History Month, honoring women who...

Nine out of 10 kids don't eat enough vegetables, according to the US Centers for Disease Control. Marketing companies spend $1.8 BILLION marketing junk food to kids as young as 2. A farmer, two farm to school program educators, and a chef have committed themselves to combat this issue by creating meaningful, turn-key resources that are accessible, impactful and fun! Having spent a decade traveling...

Mona Esposito, aka "The Grain Lady," is an activist and advocate of restoring heritage grains to Colorado. She is a resource for all things grain, in the field and in the kitchen. Through the Noble Grain Alliance she co-founded in 2016 and founding board member of The Colorado Grain Chain in 2019, she is supporting and recreating the network of farmers, millers and makers needed to make a regional...

A bartender who gives history lessons with every cocktail she serves? You bet! Her name is Tiffanie Barriere, aka "The Drinking Coach" and her main goal is education, service, and fun with every pour. Her history lessons pay homage to her ancestors, culture, and family, as well to the labor of the Black women before her who shaped the modern-day hospitality industry. Her cocktails are inspired by...

From first selling sasuage for a local 4th of July Festival in 1990, Loree Mulay Weisman is proud to run the 31 year old food company that sells all products that are clean, paleo-friendly, gluten-free an top 8 allergen free. Though the ingredients are now "on-trend" her recipes is from her family's centuries old tradition. Learn how Loree ensures her food is certifed allergen-free foods and how t...

Celebrate Women's History Month, we're honoring women who are doing amazing work— creating their own HERstory — within the global food and beverage system. Caroline McCann is passionate about sustainable, ethically-produced food, and assisting communities around southern Africa to develop local food economies using the principles of #SlowFood - good, clean & fair food for all promoting biodiversit...

Michele Payn wants us to better understand the connection between food and the farm. One way she does that is by bringing clarity and common sense to help us all navigate the grocery store. As one of North America's leading advocates, she is passionate about getting back to the truth in food – raised the right way, by the right people, for the right reasons. In this episode of Eating at a Meeting...

Shandee Chernow has taken her knowledge and personal experience with life-threatening food allergies to create a business that is revolutionizing dining for allergy sufferers and restaurant owners. As founder and CEO of CertiStar Shandee is going to share her story, including a traumatic reaction, explain the anxiety and frustration that comes with eating out with a life-threatening food allergy a...

Positive office culture is essential to happy, productive employees. Food and beverage have often been part of office culture, but what and how it was served may have subversively impacted diversity and inclusion in the workplace. In this episode, leadership and workplace culture expert Nora Burns talks about how to advocate for inclusion-based employee meal planning and shares ways employers can...

In the age of COVID-19, planners and suppliers are charged with establishing extra safeguards to keep participants, sponsors and their companies and safe and healthy. Food and beverage safety is among those extra precautions. How can both sides ensure the safety and legally protect themselves in these uncertain times? In episode, attorneys Tyra Warner and Lisa Sommer Devlin talk with Tracy about w...

Free-from, GMO, naturally grown, organic, sustainable, cage-free. You name it, there's a label for it in the food you are buying. But, what do they all mean? Which one is right for you? Your guest? Consumer's expectations around food and beverage are changing. The diversity of needs, wants and customs is vast. How do those who provide the food — farmers, manufacturers, grocers, chefs, hotels, even...

To celebrate #hearthealthmonth​, Tracy chats with Jennifer Sena, CMP HMCC, a meetings & event industry professional working for Visit Lauderdale who is also a mother of two and a heart attack survivor. Jennifer shares how having a heart attack has changed her perspective on her lifestyle, exercise and eating at home and at work. Learn how she is motivating and educating others so we can get to the...

I wanted to catch up with my friend and farmer Laurie Moore to talk about what is going on with small local farmers, the restaurants and consumers they support with seasonal, naturally-grown, organic and regional foods. I invited her to Eating at a Meeting. Connect with Tracy: facebook.com/groups/EatingataMeeting thrivemeetings.com  

Allie Bahn, also known as Miss Allergic Reactor to many in the food allergic community, has lived with life-threatening allergies to numerous foods, including four of the top eight allergens, as well as having environmental allergies and asthma her entire life. In this conversation learn how she lives and travels confidently with food allergies. She will share best practices for those with food al...