About Us

We are proud partners in helping your business grow with the strength of real dairy. As part of The Dairy Alliance network, we connect restaurants, foodservice professionals, and industry leaders to the farmers and products that make dairy an essential ingredient for success.

Why Partner With Us?

Our team brings more than 60 years of combined experience across foodservice, restaurant operations, and menu strategy. We work alongside operators to help them use dairy more effectively to strengthen menus, support innovation, and drive performance. Our approach is practical, collaborative, and rooted in how decisions are actually made in the industry.

Educate

We share timely insights on menu trends, consumer behavior, and market conditions that impact foodservice today. Our goal is to help partners understand what is happening across menus and why it matters, with a clear focus on how dairy fits into current and future opportunities.


Consult

We provide complimentary consulting support tailored to each partner’s business. This includes menu reviews, category assessments, and opportunity identification to help brands understand where dairy can add value, enhance offerings, and support operational goals.


Innovate

We work with partners to explore new ways dairy can be integrated into menus through product development, limited time offers, and platform expansion. Our innovation support is grounded in real world execution and designed to balance creativity with feasibility.

Meet Our Business Development Team

Our goal is creating and developing profitable opportunities with our partners.

Katie Ashley

Director, Strategic Partnerships

  • Award-winning foodservice sales leader with +15 years of experience in foodservice sales, program management, and strategic growth across national and regional markets

  • Managed multi-million-dollar accounts and drove double-digit growth at top companies including Performance Foodservice, US Foods, and Sysco (FreshPoint)

Michael Adams

Senior Director, Consumer and Market Intelligence Research

  • +25-year experienced multi-industry Strategist and Researcher for top domestic and global companies

  • Master in writing research instruments qualitative and quantitative

  • Directed global research initiatives that exceeded +25k participant, +40 countries leading to new growth strategies

Joanne Engelhardt-Risko

Chief Marketing Officer

  • +20 year experienced Industry award winning Food Innovator, Marketing, Brand and Sales leader for top CPG companies (Mars Chocolate Wrigley, Campbells, Synder’s Lance)

  • M&M’s, DOVE, Pretzel Crisps, Cape Cod Chips, Milky Way, SNICKERS, Snyder’s Pretzels, Pretzilla, M&M’s Colorworks, Uncle Bens Rice

Learn More About The Dairy Alliance

Discover how The Dairy Alliance supports Southeast dairy farm families and promotes the power of real dairy. From education to innovation, our mission is to make dairy part of a healthier, more sustainable future.

Connect on the Farm

See where it all begins. Our dairy farm families across the Southeast are committed to quality, sustainability, and community. Take a closer look at the people and passion behind every glass of milk and every bite of cheese.