
Wharton Agribusiness, Food, and Beverage Club (WAFAB)
Future of Food Conference
2025 Conference Speakers
We will be joined by a breadth of founders, investors, industry experts, and advocates who will share their experiences of navigating and building in today’s food ecosystem.
Keynote Fireside Chat
Founder, Executive Chair, & Former CEO at Daily Harvest
Rachel Drori is the founder, Executive Chair, and former CEO of Daily Harvest, a platform making it easy for modern consumers to enjoy sustainably grown fruits and vegetables. Rachel launched Daily Harvest in 2016 as a direct-to-consumer company to address the challenge of balancing a busy lifestyle with eating nutritious food. What began with Rachel personally delivering meals across New York City has evolved into a trailblazing company redefining the frozen food industry. With a focus on sustainability, customer-centricity, and innovation, Daily Harvest has expanded its reach and has partnered with major retailers like Kroger, Target, and Costco. The company’s mission is clear: to care for food so it can care for us, creating a healthier and more sustainable future.
Before founding Daily Harvest, Rachel honed her expertise as a customer-focused marketing executive, leading teams at Gilt Groupe, American Express, and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Mitchell J. Blutt and Margo Krody Blutt Presidential Associate Professor of Health Policy at Perelman School of Medicine
Director, Psychology of Eating and Consumer Health (PEACH) Lab
Christina A. Roberto, PhD, is the Mitchell J. Blutt and Margo Krody Blutt Presidential Associate Professor of Health Policy at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She is also the Founding Director of the Penn Center for Food and Nutrition Policy. The Center studies policies to promote healthy eating and create more equitable food systems. Dr. Roberto holds a Psychology degree from Princeton and a joint-PhD from Yale in clinical psychology and chronic disease epidemiology. A National Academy of Medicine Emerging Leader Fellow, she completed her clinical internship at Yale and was a Robert Wood Johnson Scholar at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.


Panel 1: Empowering Local Communities
How can local food systems better balance sustainability, accessibility, and equity? What are the most significant barriers to empowering local communities, and how can organizations work to overcome them? How can local food systems serve as a model for addressing global food security challenges?
Panel 2: Building Sustainable and Resilient Food Systems
How to educate consumers about the benefits of responsible sourcing? Many believe sustainability is expensive or exclusive - how to make products or solutions accessible while maintaining commitment to sustainability? Are there any emerging trends that are particularly exciting – food, consumer, tech or otherwise?
Happy Hour
Ila Byrne is a celebrated spirits marketer and beverage innovator, currently serving as Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer at Parch, where she drives sustainable and holistic beverage innovation. Named by Forbes as one of the “Women Running the Spirits World,” Ila is renowned for creating multi-million-dollar breakthroughs that transformed iconic brands, including Ketel One, Crown Royal, Baileys, and Don Julio. She led the development of Ketel One Botanical Vodka and Crown Royal Canned Cocktails while architecting Diageo’s global “low & no” strategy, delivering measurable business growth. With 15+ years of experience and a passion for the future of holistic drinking, Ila continues shaping purpose-driven, sustainable beverages.

Featured Brands
We will be joined by local food and food tech founders during our lunch session who will be sharing samples of their products.






Food Innovation Lab Cohort Brands
Annabel Buckfire, Rachel Goldman (Ambrosi)
Natural coffee syrups
Daniel Albert, Alexandre Kern, & Jose Rivero (International Beverage Company)
Globally inspired beverages
Dhruti Shah & Arjun Setty (Pataka)
Vegetarian paneer patties: a modern twist on a classic Indian dish
Sneha Mokkala (Pop Tofu)
Tofu nuggets
Veronica Rivera (SABE)
Individual dressing packets with ingredients you know and quality you can taste
Feifei Yu (Brand name TBD)
Mooncakes