Kelly Mendricks

Course: Manufacturing, Co-packing, Supply Chain, and Legal Contracts.

With nearly two decades of experience in the dynamic world of consumer food products, Kelly Mendricks has navigated everything from time-honored staples like canned goods to cutting-edge innovations in gummy vitamins.

Ms. Mendricks food career began at Bumble Bee Foods, where she held progressive leadership roles across the supply chain, ultimately managing co-packers in over 20 countries spanning nearly every continent. Kelly later led Supply Chain Operations at Pacific Foods, one of the oldest organic food brands in the U.S. Using training and methods in S&OP, LEAN, Problem-Solving, and SSRM, the team delivered results across the triple bottom line. She continued to leverage these skills at Fishpeople Seafood, a high-growth startup dedicated to revitalizing seafood jobs in North America with multiple production sites in the Pacific Northwest.

Kelly presently spearheads Supply Chain, Operations, and New Product Development at Ingenuity Foods. Her team brings Brainiac’s science-backed brain nutrition snacks to market. Brainiac is the first and leading brand focused on closing the brain nutrition gap in the United States.

With an academic background in International Political Economics and a brief tenure as a PhD candidate, Kelly integrates scholarly insights with practical application. Her approach is characterized by a blend of systems thinking and hands-on experience, ensuring innovative solutions to complex challenges.

Residing in Davis, CA, Kelly enjoys being surrounded by fields of food and biking to the farmer’s market with her family (when it’s not too hot).