Our team

Jessica is an experienced entrepreneur and business leader in the social impact, agri-tech and start-up space. Over the past 15 years, Jessica has consulted for Fortune 500 corporations, small businesses, and all four levels of government, including the United Nations, in areas of economic development and sustainability.   

As a former B Corp Ambassador, Jessica’s work concentrates on developing highly scalable startups using business as a vehicle for social change, including Social Impact Technology Accelerator (SITA).

Jessica volunteers as the Vice-Chair of KASOW, a Kenyan-based charity focusing on micro-enterprises, and is on the Board of Directors for the Gitga’at First Nation Economic Development Council in Hartley Bay. 

She lives in Vancouver with her husband and two young children.

With over 15 years in Vancouver’s tech industry, James is an experienced business leader, project manager and engineer focused on helping companies ensure that their technology solutions serve their business strategy.

James is responsible for FoodMesh’s overall product vision and concept. He leads the Product Management team with a focus on enhancing the definition and growth of FoodMesh’s products and services, while overseeing the development and management of the company’s product roadmap based on the adopted strategies and vision.

Erin Takeshita has served in various executive and senior leadership roles in the aerospace and defence and software industries. Most recently Erin started and lead a Vancouver-based Consulting practice focused on digital transformations and strengthening engineering, operations and management for software companies large and small and served as Director of Engineering at MDA one of Canada’s iconic space companies.

As FoodMesh’s COO, Erin focuses on our customers, strategy and our team’s execution.

Erin enjoys exploring BC, travelling the world and volunteers at DASH BC, a BC-based non-profit focused on creating a future where all students are socially connected, engaged and flourishing at school and in their communities.

Dan brings over 25 years of experience in the food service industry, holding senior leadership roles in retail operations, distribution & logistics, and HR. He joined the FoodMesh team to help lead and expand the Retail Operations Program.

He believes in supporting the community he lives in, volunteering at the local food bank and community kitchens. Dan spends most of his free time with his two teenage daughters and his wife Cindy. They love to travel, especially cruising in the Caribbean and Las Vegas.

Laura has over a decade of experience supporting the financial operations of various organizations in North America and France, with a focus on startups and social enterprises in recent years.

Her interest in sustainable food systems, and particularly food waste reduction, brought her to join Foodmesh in 2021 to lead the finance function.

In her spare time, Laura likes to volunteer at the local community garden, ride her bike, and explore the spectacular BC waters by stand-up paddle board.

Megan has been providing communications counsel to organisations in North America and Europe since 2006, including the University of British Columbia and HSBC Bank. She joined FoodMesh in 2020 to lead its communications function.

When she’s not helping to reduce food waste at work, Megan likes to spend her time hunting for treasures to rescue at local yard sales and thrift shops. She also enjoys crafting, designing, travelling and playing in nature.

Stuart is a senior software engineer with decades of experience building teams and systems, both large and small. His background is focused on decisions making systems and solutions for high availability applications ranging from insurance to aerospace.

He has led small, agile teams through tight timelines as well as headed up multi-year, multi-million dollar efforts with technical teams of over 80 people. He brings his expertise to both the granular architectural details and the high level user experience that FoodMesh is applying to solve the problem of food waste.

Aiko joined the Retail Food Recovery Program team in May 2020 as a Store Launch Coordinator. Growing up in a farming community in Tokyo, she was always interested in making an impact on the community and the food waste challenges we face today.

With her entrepreneurial background in hospitality and education, Aiko is now responsible for coordination and administration as well as training material development for the Retail Food Recovery Program.

A keen traveller, she enjoys nature, food, cooking, gardening and countless other hobbies and interests.

Clea joined the FoodMesh team in May 2019 to manage the new Retail Food Recovery Program. She was inspired to work for a team focusing on sustainability and community impact. Clea is responsible for helping food hubs become operationally ready, regional launches and ongoing operational support. Her aim is to ensure the program is implemented smoothly for all involved.

Clea holds a law degree and has professional experience in legal operations management, paralegal and administration roles, procurement and hospitality.

She has a keen interest in nutrition, fitness, outdoor adventures, wellness, Spanish and travel.

Eric is a network builder and technologist with a background in biology and data science. His involvement with food systems began during university where he conducted research on the economics of community-based agriculture, food waste and food security. He has been involved and led multiple projects aimed at reducing food waste and promoting food security at UBC.

Eric is entrepreneurial minded with experience managing small teams and high impact projects. His hobbies include rock climbing, alpine skiing, mountain biking, gardening and contemporary dance.

Nikki’s impact-driven career began by diverting waste at events to recycling used chopsticks at ChopValue by leading their operations and administrative functions. Nikki is now proud to be supporting FoodMesh’s retail team with client success and data management.

Beyond reducing waste, Nikki enjoys spending her time trying out new recipes, reading books, and going for hikes in our beautiful mountains. Keen to learn new languages, she also likes to study and travel.

Puneet is a product developer with over 10 years of experience in working with a wide variety of employers and clients, from a startup launching their website, financial institution releasing complex products accessible to millions of people, to a market leader creating an exciting and innovative new product. Some of his exceptional projects include the Telus MyWifi app, Mercedes Shopping Tool and Grad DNA (recruiting platform).

Outside of work, Puneet enjoys spending time with his son, experimenting with HTML, CSS, JavaScript + Frameworks/libraries and fiddling with DevOps services.

Sid has always been involved in the food supply chain, in both retail and wholesale. He has over 25 years experience in retail and wholesale, from working from India exporting grains and pulses to overseas markets, to working for a large grocery chain in his early years, and then being an independent grocer.
Sid operated City Produce and Meats in Kitsilano for 5 years then moved to London, England where he opened two grocery stores – Intercontinental Foods and Instant Save – for 15 years.

“I have seen so much food waste and this is something that has always bothered me. Being with FoodMesh I see first hand the difference being made, with food diverted by the large food chains serving people that are in need of it. Working closely with various charities to see first hand the impact of food diversion. This is what brings a smile to my face!”

Surindra brings a range of experiences to the FoodMesh team, most notably over a decade in the realm of community engagement and program development in the nonprofit sector.

He is passionate about food security and matters related to fostering sustainable practices that directly or indirectly tackles issues surrounding poverty alleviation and social justice.

In his spare time, he enjoys the natural and outdoor beauty that the areas in and around the city of Vancouver has to offer – hiking, biking, and camping. As well, a keen enjoyment in creating and exploring food and cultural experiences from around the world.

Teddie has over eight years of experience working in environmental conservation leading the scientific direction of the Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program, Canada’s leading sustainable seafood program.

Her interest in sustainable food systems lead her to complete the Practicum in Sustainable Agriculture at UBC farm, where she witnessed firsthand wasted food at the farm level. She is excited to be working with Food Mesh to help divert edible food that would otherwise be wasted to those in need of food.
In her spare time, she is a board member with the Cedar Cottage Food Network which is dedicated to creating sustainable and just food systems at the neighbourhood level. Teddie has a Masters of Environmental Science from the University of Toronto.