Pushing the envelope of functional dairy innovation

Miguel Freitas, M.S., Ph.D., is the Vice President of Nutrition and Scientific Affairs for Danone North America, based in White Plains, NY. Dr. Freitas serves as a liaison between Danone and the scientific community. He is responsible for ensuring the integrity and increasing the visibility and credibility of Danone’s product portfolio with respect to health and nutrition, from product innovation to external valorization, and serves as the Nutrition and Scientific spokesperson for Public relations and convention purposes related to brands and category topics. Dr. Freitas manages a network of nutrition and probiotics Key Opinion Leaders and Health Care Professionals (HCPs) and implements scientific initiatives targeting HCPs for several Danone brands. Dr. Freitas cooperatively works with Consumer marketing, Legal and Corporate Affairs departments in developing the Nutrition and Health components of messages, claims, communication tools and events aimed at HCPs and consumers. Dr. Freitas earned his Ph.D. from the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (INSERM, Paris, France)

Joe Rotondo is the Founder of Smearcase, the first-ever high-protein frozen cottage cheese, “FroCo.” Based in NYC, Smearcase is redefining the dairy aisle by turning cottage cheese into a crave-worthy, protein-packed dessert. As a pioneer in the category, Joe is leading the charge in innovation, proving that cottage cheese isn’t just back—it’s the future of indulgence.

Aidan joined AnaBio in 2018, bringing a broad range of technical, commercial and management experience in the food ingredients sector from Dairygold Co op where he held a number of senior roles including Commercial Director, Innovation Director and President Dairygold Food Ingredients France. Aidan has also been a board member of Food Health Ireland, Moorepark Technology Ltd and a member of the Irish Government Innovation Task Force Implementation Committee. Aidan graduated from Dublin City University with a PhD and BSc in Biotechnology and gained an MBA from Henley Business School .

Teodora Lyubomirova is a business journalist who has been the editor of DairyReporter since July 2022. She has worked across various B2B print and digital titles and was most recently the assistant editor of live events technology trade magazine, LSi (Light & Sound International). She hails from Bulgaria but has lived in the UK for more than a decade.