About Maeve Webster, President

Maeve Webster, President of Menu Matters, is a leading consultant for foodservice manufacturers and operators. She has spearheaded hundreds of major industry studies during her 18 years as a foodservice specialist, and today runs a private consultancy focused on helping manufacturers and operators analyze, understand, and leverage foodservice trends. Maeve’s expertise is in the areas of trend analysis, market assessment, consumer behavior, product testing, and brand optimization.

For 13 years, Maeve was Senior Director at Datassential. During that time, she helped develop several of Datassential’s new products and programs including the company’s publications group and TrendSpotting package, headed the company’s health & wellness group, and participated in several industry initiatives including the Culinary Institute of America’s Healthy Menu R&D Collaborative.

In addition to her consulting work, Maeve owns a café in Bennington, VT, running the kitchen and designing the menu. This has not only been a labor of love but has brought to life the issues from both a consumer and operator point of view that she has consulted on for nearly two decades. In her off hours, she raises bees, tends an orchard of nearly 150 fruit trees and berry bushes, and manages 20 raised beds.

She is a regular speaker at top industry events such as Flavor Experience, World of Flavors, World of Healthy Flavors, National Restaurant Association Show, and New Products Conference; and has contributed to major media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, NPR, CNBC, MSNBC and CBS. She regularly contributes to several industry publications including Flavor & the Menu. Maeve earned her MBA at the University of Illinois and holds a culinary degree from Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago.