When did you know that you wanted to work in food? 

There is a shortage of good Jamaican food in the Bay Area. So I told my wife we should start a pop-up, since she could supply the recipes and I had a background in restaurant management. But once I started looking into the requirements to start a pop-up, I realized the infrastructure for small food businesses was vastly underdeveloped. That's where the idea for what would eventually become Indie Food Hub was born.

How did you get your current good food job?

I put in a lot of hard work with my partner, Randy Boyes, to build this company from the ground up. We saw that the kind of resource center small food entrepreneurs needed didn't exist yet, and we wanted to help.

How did your previous work or life experience prepare you for a good food job? 

I have a background in human rights activism, freelance journalism, and also restaurant management. I felt like with Indie Food Hub, I really wanted to build something that was more than just the nuts and bolts, but also spoke to the politics behind food. Working in all of these fields allowed me to approach the idea with a diverse toolbox at my disposal.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome in pursuing your Good Food Job dream? 

Finding the right financial institutions to help make the vision a reality.

Name one positive thing that a former employer taught you that you continue to appreciate?

I will never forget someone telling me to 'praise in public, punish in private.' I have held this adage close to my heart everywhere I've worked, and always strive to ensure that workplace dignity and positivity are enshrined in our ethos.

What can you identify as the greatest opportunities in food right now?

I think the opportunities are so vast, it's hard to limit. I see fermented foods as a potential huge new market, and sustainable fishing, too. I think food hubs, meaning the physical spaces that help anchor small food businesses, are exciting and a big force multiplier for making food better for everyone.

If you could be compensated for your work with something other than money, what would it be?

Cookies? Can I say cookies?