For Researchers
Researchers in nutrition science, food systems, agricultural technology, consumer behavior, public health, or culinary arts are invited to explore collaboration.
Food and Society Innovation Initiative
About This Initiative
The Food and Society Initiative is directed by Dr. Suzannah Gerber, Faculty Fellow at the Auster Center and a leading innovator at the intersection of food science, nutrition, policy, consumer behavior, and commercialization.
The initiative identifies the social, political and cultural gaps surrounding emerging food technologies and sustainable food systems— envisioning a world where healthier, more sustainable food systems, and novel foods benefit society. TO get there, the initiative approaches feedback for products and practices informed not only by scientifically rigorous evidence but also cultural compatibility, farmer livelihoods, culinarily functionality, and social acceptance. It integrates farming and culinary, with sensory and consumer research, alongside clinical and public health goals to move discoveries beyond the lab-to-market pipeline and into the broader policy and cultural landscape.
Current Focus
In service of FSII's mission to advance adoption and responsible scaling of food innovations, and vision of aligning priorities across sectors to build trust and translational readiness—the initiative tackles one cross-cutting topic area at a time through an iterative process loop of convening, analyzing and systematic reporting.
The next three convenings take a systems-view of food-system change:
Farm Transitions
FSII's first convening (September 22–23, 2026) examines the transition of farming practices and modalities, including shifts in protein systems, and how technology can support the professionals navigating that change. The session pairs speaker positions with a field visit to a working farm and a cellular agriculture lab, producing a qualitative analysis of gaps, barriers, and bolsters, plus an impact-evaluation outline for farm sanctuaries and humane education.
Food Processing, Field to Facility
The second convening (February–March 2027) takes on the definitions and implications of food processing—both the benefits and the risks—and introduces pre-harvest processing considerations that current frameworks largely leave out. Novel foods are often caught in the crossfire of systems that default to legacy foods, how will this impact healthful innovations going forward? The output includes a parallel gaps-and-barriers analysis, extending the systems lens from the farm to the facility.
Misinformation and Obstruction
The third convening addresses the campaigns shaping public trust in food-system innovation, building on research examining whether obstruction tactics developed in the oil-and-gas sector have been adapted to target alternative proteins—work informed directly by active expert-witness engagement in cultivated-meat litigation.
About the Director
Suzannah Gerber, PhD
Suzannah ("Chef Suzi") Gerber, PhD is a food, nutrition, and behavior scientist, chef, and food-system innovation leader whose work bridges bench-level research and real-world commercialization. She brings more than 15 years of experience in culinary product development, foodservice, brand strategy, and consumer testing.
Dr. Gerber holds appointments at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine, George Mason University's College of Public Health, and the Tufts University Center for Cellular Agriculture. She also serves as Executive Director of the Association for Meat, Poultry & Seafood Innovation (AMPS), the North American trade association for the cultivated meat and novel-foods sector. A 2025 Leading Women in Food Tech awardee, she has been widely featured in national and international media and is the author of the critically acclaimed cookbook Plant-Based Gourmet.
Get Involved
For Partners
Food companies, agricultural technology firms, foundations, and retail and foodservice organizations are encouraged to reach out. This initiative is available for naming by a donor or foundation committed to transforming the global food system.
For Students
Students with interests in food science, nutrition, sustainability, or culinary innovation can explore research and fellowship opportunities.