“True innovation usually requires doing things that haven't been done before, and that can be very painful for some people along the journey. If you are a natural, innovative thinker then you don't mind jumping in when you don't know where you're going to land. And to me, that's the definition of innovation.” — Barb StuckeyIn this episode of Owning Your Legacy,  Laurette is joined by Barb Stuckey, the chief innovation and marketing officer of Mattson Group. Barb grew up in the restaurant industry—from taking in the foods and flavors at her best friend’s parents’ Chinese restaurant while growing up in Baltimore, to serving and bartending herself, to eventually finding her way into food and bev sales, getting her MBA, and joining Mattson. She’s got a deep passion for the science of taste (she even wrote a book on it) and loves to get shoulder-to-shoulder with her clients and team to bring new taste innovations to life. One of those innovations is the idea of the “local harvest,” which she describes in detail in the episode. Laurette and Barb also discuss the innovation journey, what Barb’s dubbed the “four I’s of innovation” and what our generation of food industry leaders needs to do to leave a legacy. In this episode of Owning Your Legacy:The importance of authenticity in product development; Bleeding edge food and beverage trends and innovations; Why “innovation hurts”; How Mattson adapted during the pandemic; What it means to have “taste empathy”If you enjoyed the episode please share it with others, and rate, review, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. To learn more about me and how I am Owning My Legacy, you can find me on Instagram @LauretteRondenet and online at lauretterondenet.com.