Who are the Sustainable Kitchen Consultants Food Sector Advisors?

A panel of ten specialists assembled by Julie Cleijne: sustainability- and nutrition-trained chefs, organic and regenerative farmers, food retail and hospitality leaders, an award-winning recipe developer, food waste and fermentation experts, a sustainable design specialist, and supply-chain and finance strategists. Between them they bring more than 150 years of hands-on food-sector experience.

Can members ask the advisors questions directly?

Yes. Asking the Advisors is part of membership: you put your questions directly to Julie, the Sustainable Kitchen Consultants team, or their Food Sector Advisors, and draw on real-world experience and lessons learnt rather than generic guidance.

What areas do the advisors cover between them?

Menus, nutrition and recipe development; organic and regenerative farming; food waste and surplus; fermentation and sustainable manufacturing; food retail and hospitality leadership; sustainable and restorative design; sustainable supply chains, finance and food-system decarbonisation — across food service, manufacturing and retail.

How do their answers stay evidence-based?

The community runs on Pulse Cultivator, Vitagri's white-label platform, so advisors answer with the Vitagri Pulse evidence base — a curated catalogue of graded, peer-reviewed records — alongside their own experience. An idea only carries the endorsed mark once Sustainable Kitchen Consultants' experts have endorsed it against that evidence.

How do I join and meet the advisors?

Send an enquiry from the Sustainable Kitchen Consultants page and Julie and the team will be in touch about membership. There is no obligation, and your details are only used to answer your enquiry.

Meet your Advisors — Sustainable Kitchen Consultants

Julie Cleijne Founder & group leader

Chef & NutritionistEducator & SpeakerAward-winning Recipe DeveloperOrganic & Regenerative Farming

Julie Cleijne holds an MBA in Sustainable Food & Agriculture and is a Nutrition-trained Naturopathic Chef specialising in plant-forward, seasonal, low/zero-waste, and sustainably sourced recipe development. Her work centres on creating menus that prioritise both human health and planetary wellbeing. She brings extensive expertise in Green Hospitality training, nutrition, and cultural food education.

Stefano Cuomo

Food Retail LeaderHospitality LeaderSustainability Advocate

Stefano is the 6th generation of the family business at acclaimed Kentish food & drink brand, Macknade, heading it up for the past 15 years and taking it from a partnership to a limited company in 2014.

Sarah Brading

Sustainable Hospitality StrategistBrand BuilderCommunications Expert

Sarah Brading is a sustainability strategist, creative brand builder, and co-founder of Flat Earth Pizzas — recognised by Time Out as one of London's top three most sustainable restaurants and the only independent pizzeria to hold the Sustainable Restaurant Association's 3-star rating.

Glen Burrows

Regenerative Food SystemsSustainability Strategist

Glen Burrows is a food sector pioneer, and creative and systems thinker, co-founder of the Ethical Butcher, a hugely innovative food brand, with two decades of experience shaping how we communicate, produce, and engage with food. His work bridges storytelling, sustainability, and regenerative systems, helping mission-driven organisations translate complex ideas into accessible, emotionally resonant narratives to engage customers and investors.

Jonty Brunyee

Organic & Regenerative FarmerSustainable Food Systems Educator

Jonty Brunyee is an award-winning tenant at Conygree Farm, a 73-hectare nature-focused and diverse National Trust farm in the Cotswolds producing organic vegetables and pasture-fed beef and lamb. He is also an experienced educator, consultant, and mentor with a passion for agroecology and regenerative principles.

Jess Latchford

Food Waste ExpertSustainability EducatorSustainable Supply Chains

Since founding Waste Knot in 2016, as a response to the colossal amount of pre-farmgate fresh produce wasted due to oversupply and aesthetics, Jess has become focussed on helping build a resilient food system; one which truly values people and nature by addressing factors such as social justice and environmental sustainability.

Jackie Bailey

Sustainable Food ManufacturingFood Tech Consultant

Jackie Bailey is the founder of Umami Chef, making innovative new products using traditional Japanese fermentation techniques. Jackie's clever use of koji fermentation transforms British-grown produce, food waste and excess produce into award-winning products — winning "Fermented Food of the Year" at the Great British Food Awards 2025, as well as numerous Great Taste stars.

David Chenery

Sustainable Design SpecialistSustainability Speaker

David is an award-winning interior architect and design consultant, specialising in sustainable, restorative hospitality design. Over the last 9 years David has worked to understand the sustainability challenges facing the hospitality industry and this now dominates his approach to design. The result is a "Restorative Design Framework", built around the principles of a circular economy: designing with end of life in mind, building in rigorous flexibility, designing out waste and lowering embodied and operational carbon.

Ali Murrell

Sustainable Supply Chain SpecialistSustainable Finance Strategist

Ali Murrell is a financial strategist and systems thinker with over 15 years of experience spanning investment banking, entrepreneurial ventures, and impact-driven business. His work bridges financial rigour and values-led thinking, helping mission-driven founders build organisations that achieve economic success without compromising on purpose. Ali operates at the intersection of capital, strategy, and integrity — translating complex financial realities into clear, actionable direction.

Giacomo Ranalli

Sustainable Supply Chain SpecialistFood System Decarbonisation Strategist

Giacomo is a sustainability specialist driving change across the food retail, manufacturing, and hospitality sectors.

Max Ruddle

Organic Food ManufacturingSustainable Leadership

Max is a first-generation farmer dedicated to advancing sustainable agriculture in the UK, with a focus on Organic Regenerative practices, and supporting British farming to ensure it remains viable financially and with respect to the environment and human health. He is Operations Director at Duchess Farms in Hertfordshire, managing the operations of 2 leading British food brands — Duchess Oil and Gilchesters Organics. The latter he has steered to almost double turnover in the last 2 years, whilst maintaining Organic certification and prioritising quality, efficiency and profitability.

Meet your Advisors.