Leading food science recruiter Moira McGrath gets real about what it takes to land your dream job. Food scientist Micaela Cox unpacks the science behind sugar reduction, the challenges and potential benefits of sugar alternatives, and what the future holds for food and beverage companies looking to capitalize on the zero-sugar trend. IFT’s Anna Rosales offers an update on her advocacy work in Washington and what she’s seeing and hearing about the GRAS rule, ultra-processed foods, research funding reductions, and more.
This episode of Omnivore is brought to you by IFT FIRST—Food Improved by Research, Science, and Technology. Join food system professionals at McCormick Place in Chicago, July 13-16, 2025, for the industry's premier event connecting innovation, science, and business. Learn more at iftevent.org.
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GUESTS
Moira McGrath is president of OPUS International, an executive search firm where she and her team focus on placing food scientists with food and food ingredient manufacturers throughout the United States and Canada. Moira is a graduate of the School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University. An active IFT member, she has served or is serving on numerous university food science advisory councils, including at Cornell, UC Davis, University of Florida, Texas A&M, and Virginia Tech.
Micaela Cox, PhD, is an innovation advisor with RTI Innovation Advisors, where she uses her nutrition background to distill the state of the science regarding the health benefits of food ingredients and inform food and agriculture clients on emerging ingredients and nutritional claim substantiation. Before joining RTI in 2021, Dr. Cox interned at PepsiCo’s research and development labs where she optimized product formulations and developed new product concepts from ideation to prototype. Prior to PespiCo, as an intern at NASA’s Advanced Food Technology Lab, she assessed formulations and technologies to extend the shelf life of food for space flight.
Anna Rosales is the senior director of government affairs and nutrition at the Institute of Food Technologists, with a career that blends culinary arts, nutrition expertise, and food law. She has worked with private clients and global corporations alike, offering a unique perspective across food categories. Her previous roles include director of nutrition and science communications at Barilla and corporate dietitian at Yakult.
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.
