MEET DANIEL SKAVÉN RUBEN, THE ONE AND ONLY FUTURE OF FOOD CATALYST AND SUPERCONNECTOR

Daniel Skaven Ruben helps advance the future of food in a number of ways. He’s a 10x advisor to — and 30x angel investor in — global FoodTech and AgTech startups. He’s a venture partner / operating advisor to VCs Mudcake (Sweden), Nordic FoodTech VC (Finland) and Blume Equity (UK). He’s a mentor at accelerators Big Idea Ventures, Katapult, and Norrsken Accelerator. He’s the Founding Editor of newsletter FoodTech Weekly, and Founding Partner of Solvable Syndicate, which invests in early-stage impact FoodTech and AgTech startups globally. He also co-founded the foodtech podcast The Appetizer. Daniel was a consultant to The Rockefeller Foundation Food Initiative during 2017-2021, supporting the Foundation’s work to advance a more nourishing and sustainable food system. Daniel has also worked as an expert for the World Bank in Washington D.C. (2015-2016) on issues around technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Prior to that, he served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark in various roles in Stockholm and New York for more than half a decade, helping Danish tech companies to internationalize. Daniel holds a BSc in International Business (Copenhagen Business School), an LLM in Public International Law (Stockholm University), and an MSc in Foreign Service (Georgetown University).

What was your first job and what is your actual job?

First job: Could have been as a paperboy, mowing the neighbors’ lawn, or assembling cell phone antennas (!) in the 90s back when Sweden had a cell phone manufacturing industry.

Actual job: Hard to say; I wear many hats. I invest, advise, mentor, speak, and write. Future of food catalyst and superconnector?

Do you believe entrepreneurs are born with innate qualities or made through experiences and learning?

👶🏻 Born

🏋️‍♀️ Made

In the classic debate, which came first for you: the egg or the chicken?

🍳 Egg

🐔 Chicken

In the realm of technology, which do you think will have the greatest impact on the food system in the next 10 years? 

I don’t believe in silver bullets — i.e. magical solutions to complex problems. And the food system is incredibly complex and faces a myriad of challenges. We’ll hopefully see plenty of exciting emerging solutions go truly mainstream, from fossil free fertilizer and approaches to block methane emissions in livestock, to alt protein, to alternative cocoa and coffee, to CRISPR improved crops and foods, to AI and automation. But if I’d had to pick one single thing, it’d be digitization and data. The food sector is world’s least digitized industry (says McKinsey at least) and this leads to lost potential, food waste, and suboptimal outcomes. As we digitize the food system and make it more data-driven, we’ll see great positive impacts.

Which skill do you believe will be more useful in the future of work?

Flexibility or adaptability. Workers may have to redefine themselves professionally several times throughout their careers. They’ll need to be tech savvy, and be prepared to level up their skills repeatedly; lifelong learning is for real. It also seems likely that remote work and cross-cultural work will increase, so workers need to be able to function and communicate in different cultural contexts. So emotional intelligence will be a crucial skill too.

Describe the most surprising culinary experience you’ve ever had

Cotton Candy grapes were quite the experience the first time I had them. I’ve also had the privilege of trying cell cultivated sausage and burgers, as well as icecream and cheese made from precision fermented casein — but they weren’t surprising experiences per se as they tasted like the conventional products. Trying the Sweet Victory Gum was mind blowing. These chewing gums block the sweet taste in food for a few hours, which transform your eating experience — when you then eat something like chocolate and expect a sweet taste you get the taste of Play-Doh instead.

Name a professional you think we should interview

Sharon Cittone of Edible Planet Ventures! 👸