Next Gen Foods appoints ex-Impossible Foods and Tesla exec to board

Rachel Konrad joins the foodtech start-up as its first independent board member amid major US expansion

Singapore-based foodtech start-up Next Gen Foods has appointed former Impossible Foods executive Rachel Konrad as its first independent board member.

Konrad spent five years as chief communications officer for plant-based meat giant Impossible Foods.

Prior to joining the food industry, Konrad spent another five years at global car group Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance.

She then went on to join Tesla as its director of communications for the US and Europe.

Next Gen Foods co-founder and CEO Andre Menezes said Konrad’s international experience would match the team’s multicultural leadership.

“We were looking for a board member and mentor who has been through hypergrowth scaleup and is passionate about making the global food system sustainable,” Menezes said.

“Rachel will help us accelerate our expansion to every major market globally — with our flagship product and many others to follow,” he added.

Next Gen most recently launched its flagship plant-based chicken product TiNdle in Asia and the Middle East.

It has embarked on a major recruitment drive and is seeking to fill up to 40 roles in the US as it expands into the North American market.

Earlier in the year, Next Gen Foods raised $30 million in an extended Seed round as it sought to fund its US launch.

Among its investors are Global Fund GGV Capital and foodtech VC Bits x Bites.