Hey! We’re Siwen Deng (CTO) and Jessica Schwabach (CEO).
Siwen grew up in a rural agricultural town, where she got her passion for food safety and the environment. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Plant Science and Pathology and recently completed her PhD in Plant and Microbial Biology at UC Berkeley.
Jessica holds a bachelor’s degree in Molecular and Cell Biology from UC Berkeley. She loves scientific exploration. For her, creating healthy, innovative meat alternatives and food systems that sustainably meet protein demands is a dream come true.
We’re so glad you’re on this journey with us.
Meet the Sundial Team
Alexandre Renard
Director of Sales Development
Alexandre is a French biotechnology engineer specialized in agro-business, and holds a master ‘s of international business. Growing up on a farm, he has always been fascinated by the food industry, and is now the Director of Sales Development at Sundial.
Dale Ding
Consultant
Dale Ding is a French national studying Management at the Ecole hôteliere de Lausanne. He assisted the Sundial Foods team on the commercial upscale and initial test launch of the plant-based chicken drumsticks in Switzerland during 2020.
Kevin Burke
Lead Operator
Kevin has over 15 years of experience in the production and manufacturing of plant based beverages. He is prepared to provide direction for the development of a successful production team. Outside of work he considers himself a Renaissance Man who enjoys the outdoors.
Kim Salvatore
Food Safety and Quality Manager
Kim has worked in the food industry for most of her career, from accounting,
to HR, to CS, to Operations, Logistics, and Safety. She wound up in Quality & Food Safety
and has dedicated her career to learning all that she can to assist companies in regulatory
requirements and Food Safety Standards.
She feels that consumers buy products to feed their families and friends with the assumption that what they are buying is safe.
Lisa Sposato
Supply Chain Manager
Lisa is the Supply Chain Manager at Sundial Foods. A penchant for food, processes and implementing efficiencies started while working at her family’s deli and continued throughout her career in hospitality, fashion, and food manufacturing. As a vegan and animal advocate, Lisa is excited to be joining the Sundial Team in bringing our cruelty-free, environmentally friendly, and delicious product to the mainstream.
Mike Schenk
Production Supervisor
Mike has been in the food business for 23 plus years. Mike was Production Supervisor and Cookroom Manager at Eatem Foods in Vineland NJ for 14 years. He also served as shucking room supervisor and safety director at Lamonica Foods in Millville NJ for for 9 years.
He enjoys bass fishing, watching baseball and football, grilling, and collecting and listening to rare obscure 1960's rock music.
Nithya Rajakumar
Operations Director
Nithya is the Operations Director at Sundial Foods. During her time studying Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, she found her passion for sustainable and environmentally conscious solutions. She bridges this passion with her interest in building systems and developing innovative process structures - to help bring Sundial’s mission to life.
Pierre Villard
R&D Food Technologist
Pierre is an enthusiastic Food Technologist at Sundial Foods, and holds a master's degree in Materials Science. Passionate about food, Pierre wants to develop new food products good for the consumers and for the planet.
Prashil Patel
Process Development Engineer
Prashil holds a bachelor's degree in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering from Rutgers University. He found his passion for making innovative products that are sustainable and environmentally conscious early in his career while working in product development in the consumer goods sector. He aims to use this passion combined with his interest in the plant-based meat industry to drive Sundial to the forefront of the sustainable meat alternatives market.
Romi Takara
R&D Intern
Romi is a fourth year undergraduate student at UC Berkeley studying Nutritional Sciences and Food Systems. She is passionate about promoting healthy lifestyles that emphasize the importance of implementing a more sustainable food system.
Want to work with us?
Join our growing team and help us cook up good food.
