She loves learning. And problem-solving, including ‘reverse-engineering’ if needed to arrive at a solution. When she’s not in the lab working, this food scientist listens to an eclectic play list and is open to eating pizza any time because she believes pizza is its own food group. Meet Jennifer Dunn Carlson, Senior Scientist-Product Development, and learn how her career may be coming full circle.
When did you start at MGP, and what was your first job here?
I started in 2023, and I’ve been in Ingredient Solutions R&D the whole time. My work initially focused on applications and customer engagement, and has expanded to include sitting on technical committees, patent work, and small amounts or research. I also am studying about baking since commercial bakery customers are a significant part of our business.
What is your educational background and experience?
I don’t really like to tout educational prowess because it’s trying hard and sticking with it (and knowing the right people) that seems to matter more, in the end. I have an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Chemistry and a Master’s degree in Food Science. I put all that together in new product development roles. I was in cereals and granola for a while and did a small amount of confectionary panning. In three years at a seasonings company, I developed salad dressings, marinades, topicals for snacks, chicken, and meals, and worked a bit on batters and breadings. During supply chain challenges a few years ago, I also evaluated material replacements.
Why do you do what you do?
Because I get paid, of course! No, but really, I knew what I didn’t want to do when I was in my engineering degree. I didn’t want to work at a chemical company or a gas company that was bad for the environment. So, when I found food science it was a way to shift my focus from the petrochemical/industrial chemical space to the food space. I enjoy product development and food science for the problem-solving aspect of it. In a weird way matching and reverse engineering tend to be some of the most fun but most frustrating projects.
What part of your job do you consider crucial that others might overlook?
I think it’s sometimes a good reminder that we still are learning all the time, too. We know a lot about some things, but we don’t know everything about everything when it comes to food. It’s why we work as a team.
What album do you listen to when you’re home cooking?
Depends on the day. Lately it’s been the new song by Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga, Weird Al, Interpol or Polyphia. I like most music at least a little bit, except country, unless it’s old old country, where it starts to merge back into folk music, blues, or bluegrass.
What’s your favorite dinner?
Again, depends on the day. I think pizza is its own food group, so most days I’m down for that. But our local bar we go to sometimes has German bierocks that are pretty good. Mexican food is a good comfort food for me, and comes in two styles: authentic or fried and covered in cheese queso.
What blog, podcast, website or book do you go to for education on the industry?
Most recently, I’ve been reading through the Bakerpedia website/blog a lot, because you’ll notice in my background there isn’t as much baking. I’ve been trying (somewhat successfully) to expand what I know. For books, I scored copies of Baking Science and Technology Vol I and II that are super useful. I think the next one may be the Culinary Institute of America pastry and baking book.
What do you do exceptionally well?
I have a strong detail- oriented mind, and I am relatively good at gathering information and organizing it.to help solve a problem. I’m decent at Excel, but not as good as my colleague Greg Arnold, international sales manager. I am pretty good at talking a lot without saying much, and overexplaining when it isn’t necessary. But on the flip-side, I am willing to take as much time as is necessary to help someone learn something they want to know about (if I have the knowledge to explain it). I can also be a sounding board for someone looking to think out loud.
What are you passionate about?
I’m not sure how to answer this, exactly. I see myself as animated, but not necessarily passionate. Coffee, maybe? I am particular about my personal cup, but I won’t tell someone else how to drink it. I do like to learn things, and I find it very important to pick up tools and knowledge you can use.
Who has had the most influence on your career?
That’s tough, because there’s been many. My R&D group at Kerry definitely shaped my experience there. I got to work with great minds who had so much knowledge to impart and taught me ways to think and problem- solve. I met brilliant peers there, too, who I can still reach out to if I need a sounding board when I get stuck. I appreciated Newly Weds Foods folks who had such experience and talent. I’ve gotten to meet some of the inventors on the RS4 starch patent! It has been such a treat. I don’t think I’ve had any achievement in a vacuum. I am grateful to people that have helped me learn to fish, so I can teach others to fish, too.
What has been the most rewarding part of your time at MGP?
In coming to MGP, I moved into an area that is further from consumers than either at Kerry or Newlyweds. The knowledge is different; and learning it has been an interesting challenge that seems to be worth the reward.
What’s the biggest difference in your career today versus when you started?
The entire world seems different since 2013. I think it would be easier to rebut with, “What were you expecting to stay the same?” There were no TikTok viral trends that only lasted a week but sold out a product across the country. This idea of “chasing virality” has put a lot of pressure to accelerate SKU development. In my opinion, it’s also put emphasis on LTOs and line-extension over the fundamental research that advances in industry. Keto-friendly and clean label were just in their baby phase when I started my career. It’s sort of split product development into two paths, “that which is highly functional” and “that which is the most natural”. I always look forward to when these two paths cross, though, because it is the intersection where innovation occurs. Covid hadn’t happened yet, and GLP-1 agonists hadn’t been approved for weight loss. They’ve changed the way consumers interact with the foods they buy, and understanding those changes is only just starting. The food segment that I work in has also changed; I started in granola and now work on plant-based meat alternatives and low-carb stuff. Some of my work in granola is coming back with MGP’s new Ingenient™ Inclusions line, though, so maybe my career is really a winding circle rather than a winding path.
How would you describe MGP to someone who is unfamiliar with us?
MGP makes food and distilled spirits. I work on the food side. We take wheat flour, and we separate it into starch and protein, and use those pieces to make protein isolates, textured wheat proteins for meat analogs, and modified wheat starches like our Fibersym RW® dietary fiber.
What’s the biggest misconception about your job and MGP?
It depends on who I’m talking to. If it’s my friends and family, it’s that I’m also a professional chef, dietician, and medical professional. I put it on the record now that I am none of these things! I just happen to know more about certain parts of food making than average and think differently about food because I work in the field. I think the biggest misconception about MGP on the ingredients side is that customers are on their own when working with our stuff. We are more than happy to work with our customers, trouble-shoot with them, and help get their vision to the finish-line.
What is something great about MGP that no one knows about?
I don’t know if it’s touted enough about the giving back we have done in things like the Boxes of Blessing food distribution in our hometown of Atchison, Kansas. I also think the food blog on the MGP website and our new “Straight Talk About Smart Food” podcast are well-kept secrets.