Deya
Benicia, California, United States of America
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Deya is a Senior Process Engineer with a strong food engineering background focused on strategy and leading collaborative teams to develop technical, innovative solutions. With expertise in food operations and process sustainability, she excels in planning and executing projects that drive profitability and quality in food production with an operations and manufacturing focus. She’s led teams of up to 15 technical professionals from research and design, through product and process development, implementation, production, and ongoing continuous improvements.
Over the last 15 years, Deya has pioneered, developed, and scaled a wide variety of plant-based products. Through thermoplastic extrusion, she developed the texture of the first meat analog burger placed in the meat aisle, which included scaling up, ingredient sourcing, training of 7+ co-manufacturing sites, and continuous improvement of more than 30 products worldwide. Additionally, she started applying novel ingredients made out of thin air (air-fermented) to apply them to technological applications such as dairy, cereals, meat analog, and beverages. She enjoys back-engineering solutions such as taking traditional recipes and removing water to develop dry-based products to increase shelf-life and logistic efficiencies while maintaining product attributes. Her motivation is to leave this world better than the way we found it.
Skills
Years
1
3
5
7
9
11
13
15
17
20+
AUTOCAD
Project Management
Leadership
Process Improvement
Operations
Scale-up
Flow diagram and plant layout design
Technical Support
Equipment and System design
Problem Solving
Product Quality
Data Analysis
Training
Delegation
SOP design
Troubleshooting
Hiring
Partnership Acquisition
Product and Process Development
Process Equipment
Negotiation
Commercialization
Creativity
Mass and Energy Balance
Food Safety / QA/QC
Alternative Protein Ideation
Food Extrusion Technology
Texturization
Skills
3+ Years
Professional Personality
Feature Experience
MODERATE
EXTENSIVE
EXPERT
Cultural Experience
MODERATE
EXTENSIVE
EXPERT
Portfolio
Education / License & Certifications
Categories
N/AWork Experience : Current
EDUCATION:
- Bachelor of Science, Food Science Engineering – Tecnologico de Monterrey
- Food, Nutrition and Health – University of British Columbia
LICENSE & CERTIFICATIONS:
- Thermoplastic Extrusion Technology – Texas A&M
- Basic HACCP Certificate. International HACCP Alliance. Food Safety Manager Certificate. National Registry of Food Safety Professionals. (2013)
PATENTS:
- US Patent for Meat-Like Food Products (2017)
- US Patent for Microbial Biomass Comprising Food Products (2017)
Skills
Features
The Unexpected Employee
Head of Operations
Categories
Work Experience : 2020-Current
- Led project management and commercialization of innovative spice blends within 6 months after ideation into +200 stores across CA and TX
- Initialized development of dry-based formulas from fresh established recipes for transportation removal costs by 80% and supply efficiency costs by 150%
- Negotiated and acquired 7 key partnerships and contracts in Marketing, Distribution, Sales, Manufacturing and Procurement in less than 4 months
- Procured ingredients and managed logistics with brokers from bench to manufacturing
- Designed and procured packaging of spice products in 9 SKUs
Features
Air Protein
Associate Director of Food Technology
Categories
Work Experience : 2022-2023
- Led product technology team (5) to develop meat analog applications using novel air-fermentation protein substrates with -0.5% carbon footprint
- Initialized 20% replacement of plant based texturized material into novel protein by facilitating texture provision, where its procurement was limited.
- Managed 7 new strategic partners and 3rd party contracts in less than 18 months
- Conceptualized a Project Management program to validate “The Air Protein Technology Radar” by incorporating novel protein into food applications through 15+ new technologies.
- Cross-functionaly led TRL system development for organization
- Collaborated pilot plant infrastructure redesign in record time, < 6 months
- Accelerated qualification of meat analog into $100M X-prize for carbon removal
Skills
Beyond Meat
Senior Operations Process Engineer
Work Experience : 2014-2022
- Led ideation, development, and commercialization of first plant-based burger sold in meat aisle, with 30+ plant-based other products in retail and food service areas
- Started up commercialization and manufacturing of 8 national, international co-manufacturers of +30 SKUs
- Led key projects to achieve production demand: equipment inspection, environmental regulations, testing, sensory validation, equipment implementation
- Directed technical workstream with food service executives to achieve and overcome customer expectations from an organoleptic perspective as well as launching in record timing: Dunkin Donuts, Tim Hortons, Subway, A&W, KFC, Starbucks, CKE, McDonalds, etc.
- Led project management to commercialize plant based Jerky along with the PEPSICO Planet partnership and a cross-functional team of 30+ people.
- Initiated the Continuous Manufacturing Line within 8 months and $2M budget, to reduce batching process by 90%, increasing consistency and reducing carbon footprint with mass balance, plant layout design
- Lead support for LCA Study for Beyond Burger: UN Champion of Earth Award in 2018
- Achieved 35% net revenue growth despite CV-19, global downturn, executing projects with short timelines by adjusting process, ingredients, equipment sourcing, manufacturing
- Achieved 5x increase in production by adjusting acceptable product behavior, validated equipment size and attributes, personnel training, equipment rate validation, and forecasting of production, raw materials
- Managed 300% increase in extrusion manufacturing capacity using troubleshooting, trial and error, die design, parallel equipment addition, SOP training
Directed first extrusion team, pilot, scale-up, production line through standards of testing, operation for texture development: benchtop to manufacturing (HME and LME)