The International Foodservice Editorial Council (IFEC) has announced the election of officers and new members of the board of directors for 2023.
President Megan McKenna is the senior director of marketing and foodservice for the National Watermelon Promotion Board (NWPB). An IFEC member since 2007, McKenna has been with the Watermelon Board since 2014, when the watermelon industry added a primary focus of increasing demand for watermelon in foodservice. She works with decision-makers to place more watermelon on menus, including influencing them with watermelon features in foodservice media. Prior to the NWPB, McKenna was with the National Mango Board. Before falling in love with the produce and foodservice industries, McKenna graduated from the University of Central Florida and worked for the Historical Society of Central Florida. A born and raised Floridian, McKenna loves anything outdoors and lives in Winter Park, FL, with her husband, Jay; children, Sara Mae and James; and pup Griswold.
Vice president Taylor DeVries is a senior account supervisor for BLAZE PR—a boutique Santa Monica-based agency that has become the go-to partner for lifestyle brands hungry for a real piece of the market share. While she manages a variety of brands, her F&B clients include better-for-you and better-for-the-planet brands like NadaMoo!, Boxed Water, Skinny Butcher, and Mary’s Gone Crackers. Prior to joining BLAZE PR, DeVries worked at EvansHardy+Young—a marketing and communications agency specializing in Food, Wine & Spirits, Restaurant Chains, and Casino Resorts. At EH+Y, she found a love for foodservice PR and worked especially with commodity boards including the Idaho Potato Commission, Peruvian Avocado Commission, California Walnuts, and the National Honey Board, eventually running the latter 2 accounts. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature, as well as Communication Studies with an emphasis in small group communication, from the University of San Diego.
Secretary Patricia Fitzgerald has more than 35 years of experience as a publications professional, with special expertise in foodservice, notably the K-12 segment. Editor of School Nutrition, the flagship publication of the School Nutrition Association, since 1996, Patty directs all aspects of content for this award-winning magazine. In 2019, she launched PFitzCommunications to explore new, diverse opportunities to apply her editorial expertise and engage in storytelling. She continues to serve as School Nutrition’s chief editor, is a contributing editor to Flavor & The Menu, and conducts special projects for other clients within and outside the foodservice industry. Her depth of knowledge of the school nutrition profession and creativity in generating editorial content for that audience earned Patty the 2003 FAME Silver Friend of Child Nutrition award. She served as IFEC president in 2016–17 and was the 2018 recipient of its esteemed Betty Bastion Outstanding Service Award.
Treasurer Mike Kostyo is the resident Trendologist and an Associate Director at Datassential, the food industry's leading market research and trends company. At Datassential, Kostyo oversees the company's seven TrendSpotting magazines, custom client publications, and he leads trend immersion tours and ideation sessions across the country. Kostyo was a recurring guest on Fusion TV's "The AV Club Show"; has been featured on WGN Radio, CBS Radio, and Gimlet Media's "Why We Eat What We Eat" podcast; is regularly featured in newspapers and magazines; speaks at numerous conferences across the country annually; and was a judge on Food Network's "Eating America." He has a Master’s in gastronomy from Boston University, plus certificates in the culinary arts, baking arts, wine, and artisan cheese production. In his spare time, he teaches cooking classes and co-founded a monthly food swap in Chicago. For more information on Kostyo, visit mikekostyo.com.
Newly elected members of the IFEC board of directors Megan McKenna and Mike Kostyo and were both re-elected after finishing a full term along with Patty Fitzgerald, editor, School Nutrition Magazine, and Wendy Brannen, senior director of marketing & communications, American Soybean Association.
The board elections took place during IFEC’s 2022 conference, held in Santa Barbara, CA. Next year’s conference, set for Louisville, KY, November 1–3, will feature local chefs, restaurateurs, growers, and producers conducting demonstrations, workshops, and tours for attendees.
