Sherry Jennings-Barsamian is an operational strategist with nearly three decades of experience transforming the food, beverage, and TIC landscapes. As Senior Vice President of Operations at Mérieux NutriSciences, she leads the North American strategic and functional operations with full P&L accountability.r

Sherry is a champion of cultural transformation, leveraging a Lean Six Sigma background and a Servant Leadership approach to modernize legacy systems. Her expertise spans the full operational lifecycle, from Procurement and M&A to large-scale infrastructure build-outs, while maintaining world-class standards in safety, quality and delivery. A tech-forward leader, she has successfully steered massive ERP (SAP/JD Edwards) integrations and pioneered the use of iOS-based real-time performance systems to drive organizational agility.

A specialist in organizational scaling, Sherry has successfully led the integration of several high-value acquisitions. By restructuring divisional leadership and developing a comprehensive onboarding playbook, she optimized the executive transition process, significantly accelerating the time-to-productivity for incoming leadership teams.

Professional Milestones
As Senior Director of Operations at Baldwin Richardson Foods, Sherry pioneered a Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) framework that achieved a 58% year-over-year reduction in quality holds. In a strategic partnership with the Rochester Institute of Technology, she launched a Lean Six Sigma initiative that certified 5% of the cross-functional workforce, directly driving bottom-line growth through optimized yields and operational efficiency.

As an operational leader at Kraft Foods / Mondelēz International, Sherry oversaw large-scale manufacturing environments of 600+ personnel, driving a 65% improvement in quality metrics and generating $19M in bottom-line productivity. She was notably hand-picked as one of 12 worldwide leads to co-develop and pilot the Integrated Lean Six Sigma framework alongside Procter & Gamble, setting the global standard for the organization’s manufacturing excellence.

Sherry’s career foundation was built at PepsiCo, Kellogg’s/Keebler, where she rapidly progressed from Production Supervision to Business Unit Manager. During this formative period, she co-led a $32M automation project at Kellogg’s and developed high-visibility KPI dashboards at PepsiCo’s headquarters, an initiative that provided critical real-time data across 52 plants and 315 warehouses.

Education & Affiliations
A champion for inclusive leadership, Sherry serves as the executive sponsor of the Women in Science ERG at Mérieux NutriSciences, co-led the Kraft Supply Chain Women initiative, and is a dedicated supporter of local Food Banks. She holds an Executive Green Belt, BCMA Certification, and is a Diversity Trainer. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Financial Management from the Lundy-Fetterman School of Business at Campbell University.

Jose Emilio Esteban is a distinguished professional with extensive experience in food safety, public health, and scientific leadership, holding a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM), a Master of Preventive Veterinary Medicine (MPVM), a Master of Business Administration (MBA), and a Ph.D. in Epidemiology.

Career Highlights
Dr. Esteban joined Merieux Nutrisciences a year ago and currently serves as the Chief Scientific Officer for the company, based out of our Chicago Office. Dr. Esteban was the former Under Secretary for Food Safety at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), a role confirmed by the U.S. Senate to lead the Department’s Food Safety Mission Area. His career includes significant service at the USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• USDA – Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS): He was the Chief Scientist (August 2018 – December 2022), advising on all food safety and health-related activities to ensure agency policies had a sound scientific basis. He also served as the
  Executive Associate for Laboratory Services (May 2011 – August 2018), leading the development of expert scientific laboratory analysis and overseeing scientific programs addressing food safety from farm-to-table.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): He held key roles including Assistant Director for Public Health, Food Safety Office, and Epidemiologist, where he provided technical consultation on food safety issues and managed public health programs.

Professional and International Engagement
Dr. Esteban has played a critical role in international food safety standards:

• He was the Chair of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH) (November 2006 – December 2022), a body of the WHO/FAO that sets standards for international food safety and trade.
• He is on the Executive Board of the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP), the largest international association for food professionals.

Education and Awards
He earned his Ph.D. in Epidemiology and MPVM from the University of California at Davis, and his DVM from the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico.

Dr. Esteban is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award (2021) and multiple USDA Secretary’s Honor Awards for Exceptional Service and Group Honor Awards for Excellence.