I'm your host, Zachary Cartwright, and today marks our 40th episode - a special milestone. To celebrate, we've got an equally special guest joining us, Ashutosh Jaiswal, a wizard in the world of food safety and a driving force in quality assurance with over a decade of experience at Sri Dut India Private Limited.

Ashutosh shares his journey, from his formative years influenced by family ties to agriculture and the food industry to his current role, where he passionately oversees quality assurance and food safety. He's not only worked to earn the prestigious American Institute of Baking Certification and the National Confederation of Indian Industry Food Safety Award but also poured half his salary into food safety education to fuel his dreams.

Today, we delve deep into the science and innovation with Michelle Schwenk, the president and food science consultant at Bellis Food Solutions in Decatur, Illinois. Bellis is a company renowned for its insights into formula development, technical guidance, and testing for the food industry, working with everything from candy to dairy.

We reveal the joy of coupling water science with food processing. From the process of creating unique food products to understanding the importance of water activity and isotherms in maintaining food quality and predicting shelf life - we've got it all.

Michelle's got some fascinating stories about troubleshooting tricky food formulas and how her expertise in water activity came into play. We'll hear about the intriguing transformation story of sticky gummies and the low sugar product category, which Michelle describes as a challenge in the food industry.

So food nerds and innovators alike, let's get ready to dive into an enriching conversation filled with the complexities of food science, obstacles, and advances in our industry. This is an episode every food-preneur be they seasoned or budding shouldn't miss.

In today's episode, we have a special guest, Dr. Milda Embuscado, a distinguished scientist at McCormick and Company. Dr. Embuscado is an expert in materials and processing technology, with a focus on powder science and technology, flavor compounds, flavor encapsulation, and food emulsions. She shares her insights on the role of water activity measurements and moisture absorption isotherms in understanding ingredients and developing new products.