Agenda
Speakers

Michael Dykes, D.V.M.

Scott Sexton

Emily Darchuk

Caroline Keeley

Matt Musselman

Nynke Slegten

Daryl Kleinschmit, PhD, PAS, DPL ACAN

Decker Walker

Prerak Bathia

Hamish Keston

Jason Buschl

Travis Pierce

David Parr

Tom Wojno

Ana Kinsman

Meeghan Jones

Simone Frazier

Stephane Adam

Matt Herrick

Paul Myer

Chris Malone

Steve Shehadey

Beth Robertson-Martin

Nick Kosturos

Kathleen Li

Peter Russell

Chris Linklater

John Church

Aidan Connolly
And more! See the agenda below for additional speakers.
Day 1 – Wednesday, May 17
1:30pm - 3:00pm
Optional: Delkor Systems Plant Tour
Delkor Systems Headquarters: 4300 Round Lake Road West, St. Paul, Minnesota
Delkor is a leading manufacturer of robotic packaging machinery for the dairy industry as well as many other segments of the food and beverage market. Last year Delkor opened a new facility bringing its total operational footprint to 300,000 square feet with about 350 employees.
For early arrivals to DairyTech, Delkor is hosting a tour of its manufacturing operation. As part of the tour, attendees will see a variety of packaging lines, many of which are being built for IDFA member companies.

3:30pm – 6:30pm
Grass to Glass Innovator Series
4:00pm – 4:30pm
Opening Session: World-Leading Technological Innovation
Michael Dykes, President and CEO, International Dairy Foods Association
Scott Sexton, CEO, Ever.Ag
4:30pm – 5:30pm
Innovation through Startup Collaborations: Tapping the Agility of Startups to Accelerate Corporate Innovation
Moderator: Caroline Keeley, Vice President, Corporate Engagement, Foodbytes by Rabobank
Matt Musselman, Chief Operating Officer, Dairy Farmers of America (CoLAB)
Nynke Slegten, Director of Product Management, Connecterra B.V.
Daryl Kleinschmit, PhD, PAS, DPL ACAN, Discovery Researcher – Dairy, Zinpro Corporation
5:30pm – 6:30pm
Keynote: Venturing Wheyward to Create Sustainable Innovation
Emily Darchuk, Founder and CEO, Wheyward Spirit
Learn how she is partnering across industries to make food chains more efficient and effective and how collaboration between the dairy industry and entrepreneurs can drive more sustainable innovation from farm to flask.
6:30pm – 7:30pm
Reception
Day 2 – Thursday, May 18
7:30am – 3:30pm
Grass to Glass Innovator Showcase
7:30am – 8:00am
Networking Breakfast
8:00am – 9:00am
The Most Impactful Technologies Dairy Businesses Should Be Using
Decker Walker, Senior Partner and Managing Director, Boston Consulting Group
Prerak Bathia, Partner, Boston Consulting Group
9:00am – 10:00am
Innovating from the Outside In
Moderator: Hamish Keston, SVP, Business Development, Austin Data Labs
Jason Buschl, Head of Planning, ANZCO Foods
Travis Pierce, Director of Information Technology, Tillamook County Creamery Association
David Parr, Executive Director of Supply Chain, Food & Beverage, Ecolab
10:00am – 10:30am
Networking Break
10:30am – 11:30am
The Next Generation of U.S. GHG Markets
Moderator: Matt Herrick, Senior Vice President, IDFA
Paul Myer, CEO, Athian
Chris Malone, Head of Emerging Opportunities, Indigo
Steve Shehadey, Owner, Bar 20 Dairy
Beth Robertson-Martin, Co-Founder and VP of Partner Development, Merge Impact
Yet for carbon markets to play their role as a tool for climate mitigation in the United States, there needs to be predictable demand for affordable carbon credits and reliable capital to invest in the capture and measurement of GHG. In essence: A new supply chain is emerging based on a new feedstock—manure. What will the future of renewable energy and carbon markets look like from U.S. dairy’s perspective? In this session, we talk with a leading renewable energy company, a quickly emerging GHG software solutions provider, and one of the nation’s leading carbon marketplace providers on what’s next for GHG markets in the United States.
11:30am – 12:30pm
Futureproofing Cybersecurity in the Dairy Industry
Nick Kosturos, Associate Partner, McKinsey & Company
Kathleen Li, Cyber Expert, McKinsey & Company
Peter Russell, Cyber Expert, McKinsey & Company
Chris Linklater, Mandiant Consulting
What should management and the board do to prepare in an environment of escalating destructive and disruptive attacks? What are the right questions to ask and what are the red flags to look out for? As cybersecurity regulations increase, so too do the expectations of board members’ familiarity with cybersecurity-related concepts. Yet in an environment of rising inflation and shrinking margins, how do we simultaneously protect and grow our business? This session will review cybersecurity trends, discuss the intensifying threat landscape, and share valuable insights dairy companies can take to “futureproof” their cybersecurity programs.
12:30pm – 1:30pm
Networking Lunch
1:30pm – 2:30pm
Dairy Technologist Panel 2.0
Moderator: Tom Wojno, Senior Vice President of Innovation and Member Advancement, IDFA
Ana Kinsman, Vice President, Information Technology, Aurora Organic Dairy
Meeghan Jones, Director of IT, Cabot Creamery Co-operative
Simone Frazier, Senior Vice President of Manufacturing, Darigold
Stephane Adam, Vice President of Information Technology, Hilmar Cheese Company
2:30pm – 3:30pm
Fireside Chat: DairyTech 2023 Reflections from a Supply Chain and ESG Innovator
John Church, Former General Mills Supply Chain and Transformation Officer
Aidan Connolly, President, AgriTech Capital