Team – Food Innovation Center

Leadership Team

Peggy Brennan–Tonetta

Executive Director, Economic Development and Innovation
Associate Director, Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station

Peggy is the founder and administrator in charge of the Food Innovation Center. She provides oversight and guidance for this internationally recognized business incubation program.

Question:
What is your proudest accomplishment at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
My proudest accomplishment is the tremendous impact that the center and the outstanding staff have had on the success of hundreds of businesses that have utilized our services and the difference we have made in people’s lives as a result.
Peggy Brennan–Tonetta’s Bio

Nolan Lewin

Acting Executive Director & Director of Operations
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

Nolan is currently responsible for managing both the FIC South and North facilities and staff as the Acting Executive Director. He is also responsible for oversight of manufacturing operations at both locations, ensuring that the production of products meets all regulatory requirements and the facilities are maintained to meet USDA standards.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I enjoy working at FIC for only one reason. Joy….the intense satisfaction and sense of accomplishment that I get by helping, mentoring, teaching and interacting with the variety of businesses and people. It is pure joy.
Nolan Lewin’s Bio

Research & Development, Manufacturing & Operations

Nolan Lewin

Julie Elmer

Associate Director, Food Technology
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

In her role as Associate Director of Food Technology, Julie leads the R&D and Culinary Innovation team responsible for product development, process testing and validation, ingredient and packaging selection and specification, nutrition analysis and labeling consultation, and the entire technical process from concept to commercialization.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I enjoy collaborating with entrepreneurs who are some of the most creative and passionate people to work with. No two days are ever alike.
Julie Elmer’ s Bio

Elizabeth Purcelly

Associate Director Quality Assurance & Food Technology
Available at FIC North – Piscataway

As Associate Director for Quality Assurance & Food Technology at FIC North, Elizabeth is responsible for supervising production activities, creating and implementing all food safety programs for the facility, providing client support for daily operations, and assisting companies in creating and implementing food safety programs at their own facilities. She also provides employee training in all aspects of food safety.

Question:
What do you like most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
What I like most is that every day is a little different, offers a new challenge. No chance for becoming complacent.
Elizabeth Purcelly’s Bio

Jeff Canavan

Associate Director – Engineering & Operations
Available at FIC North – Piscataway

In his role as Associate Director, Engineering & Operations at the Food Innovation Center North, Jeff provides engineering and operating support for the center and its clients, as well as Department of Defense Meals Ready to Eat projects.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working with the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
My most rewarding experiences are working with people to identify and solve problems. Leading and contributing to the success of projects, large or small, holds great value to me.
Jeff Canavan’s Bio

Martha Lemcke

Manager of Production Planning and Facilities
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

Martha oversees and manages production planning and product manufacturing at the FIC South facility.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working with the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I enjoy working at FIC for the camaraderie of the staff.
Martha Lemcke’s Bio

Greg Niehoff

Senior Facility Manager
Available at FIC North – Piscataway

Greg is the plant manager/production manager at FIC North where he works with clients to ensure the safe and efficient manufacture of their products.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
What I enjoy most about working at FIC North is the opportunity to work with a variety of customers and products. This variety presents different challenges to overcome on day to day basis.
Greg Niehoff’s Bio

Dot Hall

R&D Specialist
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

As a member of the R&D and Culinary Innovation Team, Dot provides technical guidance in areas such as ingredient sourcing, product development and process development and validation.

Question:
What is your proudest accomplishment at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I love to share the moment with the clients when they see their product in the final package for the first time.
Dot Hall’s Bio

Stephen Baughman

Senior Maintenance Mechanic
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

Steve is responsible for ensuring that day to day mechanical operations at FIC South run smoothly. This includes providing assistance with production, maintenance of all facility equipment and mechanical systems, and assisting in the R&D process.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I enjoy the day to day interactions with clients and my colleagues the most working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University. We are like a family here and that’s the type of environment that makes for the most productive days.
Stephen Baughman’s Bio

George Sansiveri

Plant and Process Engineering Specialist
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton and FIC North – Piscataway

George is an expert in food process engineering and designing food production plants. He utilizes his extensive experience to provide engineering support to FIC and its clients.

Question:
What is your proudest accomplishment at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I was part of the original FIC team, before there was a building. Collaborating to design this one of a kind award winning Incubator was a rewarding achievement. Having then been retained to oversee the construction of the facility that we designed and be part of the start up with the FIC staff , that was truly one of my proudest moments.
George Sansiveri’s Bio

Roxana Zuniga

Cook Helper
Available at FIC North – Piscataway

As a Cooks Helper, Roxana assists the FIC management team and in-house clients with the manufacturing of products and other tasks as needed for special projects. Tasks include receiving ingredients, ingredient preparation, following sops procedures, HACCP and GMP protocols, as well as performing operations such as cooking, filling, packaging and maintaining production records for material traceability and quality control.

Question:
What is your proudest accomplishment at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
My greatest achievement while working at FIC is the knowledge that I have acquired in the different projects that I have carried out.
Roxana Zuniga’s Bio

Food Safety, Quality Assurance & Regulatory Compliance

Donna Schaffner

Associate Director Food Safety, Quality Assurance and Training
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

As Associate Director for Food Safety, Quality Assurance and Training, Donna leads an exceptional team of food safety professionals who work directly with clients to ensure that all products are manufactured to meet state and federal food safety regulations. The team also provides a comprehensive food safety training program on and off site, and conducts mock audits for companies seeking higher-level audits and certifications.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I love that this job allows me to constantly meet new people and make our food supply safer through teaching Food Safety classes. I get to help people be better prepared for their jobs, comply with government regulations, and keep food processing businesses operating in a safe manner. Each client company that I work with has unique circumstances, food products, and situations that challenge my imagination and allow me to constantly stretch my abilities with a new puzzle to solve each day.
Donna Schaffner’s Bio

Eva Szewczyk

Food Safety / HACCP Trainer & Auditor
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

Eva is a member of the food safety training team, providing courses in Spanish. She also assists companies in preparing for food safety audits.

Question:
What is your proudest accomplishment at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
Being able to provide effective training in Spanish to assist in making operators and managements more aware and focused on preventing food safety issues.
Seeing how students acquire more knowledge and confidence in a single training to update their Food Safety Plans to be compliant with the FDA FSMA regulations.
Eva Szewczyk’s Bio

Mellonie O’Neill

Senior Manager – QA Compliance and Training
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

Mellonie provides QA testing and oversight for all products manufactured at the center. She is a member of Food Safety Training Team and teaches a variety of food safety courses.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
In our Food Safety Training classes, I love when the light bulb goes off and you can see the participants ‘ah ha’ moment and they starting understanding exactly what you are teaching.
Mellonie O’Neill’s Bio

Marketing, Insights & Business Strategy

Diane Holtaway

Associate Director – Marketing & Business Development
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

As Associate Director for Marketing & Business Development, Diane provides expertise and leads a team that provides services in new product development, marketing, marketing research and sales strategy. She is also developing several new programs including the Partnership Program and the Rutgers Global Food Accelerator.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
Everyday I live and breathe my passion – food! Whether I am assisting a new food start-up with learning how to navigate this complex industry, or working with a very established food company who is looking to penetrate a new space, I am inspired and energized by playing a role on their journey.
Diane Holtaway’s Bio

Joyce Friedberg

Marketing Specialist
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

Joyce’s role is to provide insights, strategic analysis and marketing expertise to help support FIC and their clients in identifying new opportunities for growth.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I have the opportunity to work with a great team who are knowledgeable, hard- working and passionate about helping others. I am excited about this opportunity to utilize my skills and experience to help clients make their vision a reality.
Joyce Friedberg’s Bio

Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University

Karen V Schutz

Marketing Specialist
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway

Karen’s role is to provide insights, strategic analysis and marketing expertise to help support FIC and their clients in identifying new opportunities for growth.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
I love the depth and breadth of expertise and ‘can do’ spirit of the of the team! Most of us are seasoned food executives and entrepreneurs and are happy to share our knowledge, which translates into a greater ‘live world’ opportunity for entrepreneurs to customize solutions from idea to market without losing equity…very rewarding!
Karen V Schutz’s Bio

Audrey Wiggins

Marketing Specialist
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton, FIC North – Piscataway
Audrey’s role is to provide insights, strategic analysis and marketing expertise to help support FIC and their clients in identifying new opportunities for growth.

Question:
What word / words would your clients use to describe you?
Clients have described me as being detail oriented, a good listener and having a quiet confidence that exudes trust.
Audrey Wiggins’ Bio

Business Management & Support

Regina Plaire

Assistant Director, Finance and Administration
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

Regina is responsible for senior level management of financial, human resource and administrative activities at all Food Innovation Center locations.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
The Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University is an exciting place to work, where every day presents something new and challenging. I enjoy the camaraderie with my co-workers and being part of an organization that supports entrepreneurs and the food industry.
Regina Plaire’s Bio

Mary Jane Smith

Business Specialist
Available at FIC North – Piscataway

Mary Jane is responsible for providing the day to day administrative and financial support for FIC North staff and clients, including receptionist duties, invoicing clients, purchasing and reconciling project financial accounts.

Question:
What words would your clients use to describe you?
I believe that the clients I work with would describe me as courteous, cheerful, supportive and knowledgeable.
Mary Jane Smith’s Bio

Pauline Pepper

Administrative Assistant
Available at FIC South – Bridgeton

As Assistant Administrator, Pauline is responsible for purchasing, payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable, expense reports, reception, and event coordination, as well as supporting the administrative needs of the training programs.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
What I enjoy most about working at FIC is working with a great gang of people, I like the work that I do (even though at times it gets very hectic!).
Pauline Pepper’s Bio

Advanced Chemistry & Analysis

Dr. Thomas G. Hartman

Director Mass Spectrometry Operations
Available at FIC Chem – New Brunswick

Dr. Hartman serves as Director of FIC-Chem’s Mass Spectrometry facility. He and his team provide analytical services in food chemistry, flavors, packaging, polymers, natural products, and pharmaceuticals, as well as expertise in instrumentation design & development and analytical toxicology with a focus on mass spectrometry and chromatography analytical techniques.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
Every day at work is an adventure and a learning experience. I work with clients of the laboratory at the molecular level to provide analytical solutions to their most vexing problems.
Thomas G. Hartman’s Bio

Joe Scarsella

Mass Spectrometrist
Available at FIC Chem – New Brunswick

As a food scientist and chemist, his responsibilities include conducting analytical tests for clients spanning from food packaging migration testing to flavor deformulation and beyond. He is responsible for interacting with customers and ensuring that their projects are completed accurately and in a timely fashion.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
The broad range of work we take on in the Mass Spectrometry Facility is my favorite part of working with FIC. Every day, we work with clientele around the world on projects ranging from flavor analysis to food packaging.
Joe Scarsella’s Bio

Bin Khoo

Assistant Mass Spectrometrist
Available at FIC Chem – New Brunswick

Bin prepares samples for all of the analytical testing at the Mass Spec facility.

Question:
What do you enjoy most about working at the Food Innovation Center at Rutgers University?
Our lab receives samples from clients world-wide. The many kinds and forms of samples present an exciting challenge to prepare each unique sample in ways that it is amendable for analysis using the various kinds of analytical instruments that we have.
Bin Khoo’s Bio