The details will matter as far as what will have the most impact.
If she’s starting another plant-based burger or milk company, a la Beyond Meat or Oatly, then I’d say she can’t add so much value because there’s already a ton of activity solving that problem. But if she has novel solutions; for example, a new way to make semi-solid lipids at scale, then she can add a lot. Semi-solid lipids are a problem for nearly every alternative food effort; there two “natural” options with coconut oil and palm oil. Also, for what it’s worth, many of these companies are struggling with hiring. So rather than starting her own startup, she could join and help an impactful one. That’d likely provide even more safety.
And likewise, with the non-profit, the details matter too. I write that fighting agriculture subsidies is the biggest barrier to the alternative food revolution. At the time of writing, I couldn’t find any organization addressing this problem specifically (likely because lobbying efforts are capped for non-profits). If our wunderkind is willing to tackle that, then she could have a substantial impact.
The details will matter as far as what will have the most impact.
If she’s starting another plant-based burger or milk company, a la Beyond Meat or Oatly, then I’d say she can’t add so much value because there’s already a ton of activity solving that problem. But if she has novel solutions; for example, a new way to make semi-solid lipids at scale, then she can add a lot. Semi-solid lipids are a problem for nearly every alternative food effort; there two “natural” options with coconut oil and palm oil. Also, for what it’s worth, many of these companies are struggling with hiring. So rather than starting her own startup, she could join and help an impactful one. That’d likely provide even more safety.
And likewise, with the non-profit, the details matter too. I write that fighting agriculture subsidies is the biggest barrier to the alternative food revolution. At the time of writing, I couldn’t find any organization addressing this problem specifically (likely because lobbying efforts are capped for non-profits). If our wunderkind is willing to tackle that, then she could have a substantial impact.